The Houston Rockets were 29 seconds from their first win of the postseason Friday night. Instead, a flurry of errors turned a six-point lead into a 112-108 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, leaving Houston one defeat from elimination in their Western Conference first-round series.
“Horrendous mistakes,” head coach Ime Udoka said after Game 3 at Toyota Center. “I don’t know if it was youth or being scared of the moment.”
Late collapse erases Houston advantage
With Houston ahead 101-95, LeBron James committed back-to-back turnovers that appeared to seal the game. The Rockets gave the ball right back, and Marcus Smart drew a foul on a 3-point attempt with 25 seconds remaining. Smart converted all three free throws, cutting the deficit to 101-98.
On the following inbounds play, James stripped Reed Sheppard and buried a 3-pointer to tie the score with 13 seconds left. Alperen Şengün missed a 7-foot hook on Houston’s final possession of regulation, and James’s last-second triple bounced off the rim, sending the game to overtime.
The Lakers outscored the Rockets 11-7 in the extra period to take a 2-1 series lead.
Durant sidelined again
Kevin Durant missed a second consecutive game for Houston, this time with a sprained left ankle after sitting out Game 1 because of a right knee injury. Udoka said Durant’s status for Game 4 on Sunday remains “up in the air.”
Udoka’s postgame message: ‘Grow up’
Udoka had his players watch the final 30 seconds of regulation in the locker room immediately after the loss. “You’re not that young anymore,” he told the team. “Now you’ve got to get one on Sunday and don’t let this one beat you twice.”
Şengün posted 33 points and 16 rebounds, but acknowledged the sting of the collapse. “We’ll be upset tonight, that’s for sure,” he said. “But we’ve got to get over it. Nobody’s giving up.”
The Rockets are in the playoffs for the second straight season after falling to Golden State in seven games a year ago. Game 4 is scheduled for Sunday night in Houston.
Source: ESPN
