HOUSTON — One team played like its season was on the line.

The other team was the Lakers, who were on the losing end of Sunday’s Game 4 at Toyota Center for their first loss of their first round playoff series against the Rockets. 

After falling behind in the series by three games, the Kevin Durant-less Rockets were the more urgent and aggressive team in their 115-96 blowout victory over the Lakers, who consistently struggled to generate offense the entire game. 

The Lakers shot 50% from the field (37 of 74), but only made 5 of their 22 3-point attempts.

It was their fewest made 3s in a playoff game since making four 3s on April 26, 2013 (Game 3 of 2013 first round series against Spurs).

Deandre Ayton (19 points and 10 rebounds) and Rui Hachimura (13 points) were the only Lakers who found any sort of rhythm in Game 4 – and Ayton was ejected in the third quarter after being assessed a Flagrant 2 foul after elbowing Rockets All-Star center Alperen Sengun in the head. 

Ayton and Hachimura combined to shoot 15 of 22 from the field. 

LeBron James finished with 10 points on 2-of-9 shooting to go with 9 assists and 4 rebounds, but was one of many Lakers who struggled with taking care of the ball, having a team-worst 8 turnovers/

Marcus Smart (9 points, 5 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocked shots), had 4 of the Lakers’ turnovers. 

What it means

The series will head back to Los Angeles for Game 5 with the Lakers leading 3-1.

Turning point

When the Lakers committed three turnovers on four possessions early in the first quarter. 

They were still leading at the time, but it set a poor tone for the remainder of the game, with the Rockets ramping up their defensive pressure from there,

MVP: Amen Thompson

Thompson has been the Rockets’ best player in the series and was their most important on Sunday.

He finished with team-highs of 23 points and 7 assists, with all five Rockets starters scoring in double figures.

Tari Eason added 20 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals. Sengun has 19 points and 6 rebounds. 

Stat of the game: 24

That’s how many turnovers the Lakers committed on Sunday, their most in a playoff game since having 24 turnovers on Sept. 20, 2020, which was their win over the Nuggets in Game 2 of the 2020 Western Conference Finals.

The Rockets scored 30 points off the Lakers’ giveaways. 

Up next

Game 5 of the Lakers’ playoff series against the Rockets is scheduled for Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena with a 7 p.m. tipoff.

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters