LOS ANGELES -- — Luka Doncic had 20 points and nine assists, and Gabe Vincent added 20 points on six 3-pointers in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 104-98 victory over the Houston Rockets on Monday night.

LeBron James finished with 16 points and eight rebounds for the Lakers, who solidified their hold on fourth place in the Western Conference.

Dorian Finney-Smith also scored a season-high 20 points and hit six 3-pointers while Los Angeles sent second-place Houston to only its second loss in 14 games.

After James hit two free throws with 11.1 seconds left to put the Lakers up 102-98, he soared across the key to block Alperen Sengun's layup attempt. Dillon Brooks then missed a 3-point attempt to seal the Lakers' 29th home victory.

Amen Thompson scored 20 points and Brooks had 16 for the Rockets, who had won three straight.

The Lakers' two superstars both looked weary, and much of LA's offense consisted of Doncic and James drawing defenders before kicking to Finney-Smith and Vincent for 3-point attempts.

Neither team led by more than eight points all night, but Los Angeles nursed a small lead throughout the final 17 minutes of play.

Takeaways

Rockets: They remained defensively tenacious in the second game of a road back-to-back, but their offense was lacking. Leading scorer Jalen Green had only nine points on 4-of-13 shooting, and Sengun managed just 14.

Lakers: They sometimes looked exhausted in their 19th game in 35 days, but got the job done.

Key moment

After Brooks missed one of two free throws with 20.1 seconds left to trim Los Angeles’ lead to 100-98, the Rockets nearly tied up Finney-Smith for a jump ball — but the Lakers called a timeout first.

Key stat

Finney-Smith posted his Lakers highs in points and 3-pointers.

Up next

The Rockets host Utah on Wednesday. After their first back-to-back days off in three weeks the Lakers host Golden State on Thursday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Play By Play

Recent plays and game events

TIME	PLAY
12:00	Alperen Sengun vs. Jaxson Hayes (Amen Thompson gains possession)	0	0
11:44	Alperen Sengun makes 12-foot two point shot (Fred VanVleet assists)	0	2
11:29	Luka Doncic misses driving layup	0	2
11:27	Jalen Green defensive rebound	0	2
11:17	Alperen Sengun makes 7-foot pullup jump shot (Jalen Green assists)	0	4
10:57	Austin Reaves lost ball turnover (Amen Thompson steals)	0	4
10:48	Jalen Green misses driving layup	0	4
10:46	Luka Doncic defensive rebound	0	4
10:42	Luka Doncic makes 5-foot driving floating jump shot	2	4
10:42	Fred VanVleet shooting foul	2	4
10:42	Luka Doncic makes free throw 1 of 1	3	4
10:26	Dillon Brooks makes 24-foot three point jumper (Jalen Green assists)	3	7
10:14	Jalen Green blocks Rui Hachimura 's 8-foot two point shot	3	7
10:10	Jaxson Hayes offensive rebound	3	7
10:09	Luka Doncic misses 26-foot three point step back jumpshot	3	7
10:09	Fred VanVleet defensive rebound	3	7
10:02	Dillon Brooks misses 26-foot three point shot	3	7
9:58	Rui Hachimura defensive rebound	3	7
9:50	Austin Reaves misses 10-foot pullup jump shot	3	7
9:48	Alperen Sengun defensive rebound	3	7
9:41	Jalen Green bad pass (Luka Doncic steals)	3	7
9:36	LeBron James bad pass (Jalen Green steals)	3	7
9:33	Luka Doncic kicked ball violation	3	7
9:25	Alperen Sengun makes layup (Jalen Green assists)	3	9
9:10	LeBron James misses 26-foot three point pullup jump shot	3	9
9:06	Jalen Green defensive rebound	3	9
8:49	Dillon Brooks misses 10-foot two point shot	3	9
8:46	Jaxson Hayes defensive rebound	3	9
8:27	Rui Hachimura makes 14-foot step back jumpshot	5	9
8:15	Fred VanVleet misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot	5	9
8:12	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	5	9
8:00	Jaxson Hayes offensive foul	5	9
8:00	Rockets Full timeout	5	9
8:00	(08:00) [Rockets] COACH'S CHALLENGE (CALL OVERTURNED) [Rockets] retain their timeout	5	9
8:00	Dorian Finney-Smith enters the game for Jaxson Hayes	5	9
8:00	Jaxson Hayes turnover	5	9
7:39	Luka Doncic loose ball foul	5	9
7:32	Dillon Brooks misses 26-foot three point jumper	5	9
7:28	Rui Hachimura defensive rebound	5	9
7:20	Dorian Finney-Smith misses 23-foot three point jumper	5	9
7:17	Alperen Sengun defensive rebound	5	9
7:13	Amen Thompson out of bounds lost ball turnover	5	9
6:59	LeBron James makes 20-foot jumper (Luka Doncic assists)	7	9
6:38	Jalen Green misses 25-foot three point step back jumpshot	7	9
6:34	Luka Doncic defensive rebound	7	9
6:23	Dorian Finney-Smith makes 27-foot three point jumper (Luka Doncic assists)	10	9
6:03	Jalen Green misses driving floating jump shot	10	9
6:01	LeBron James defensive rebound	10	9
5:56	Rui Hachimura misses 26-foot three point jumper	10	9
5:51	Fred VanVleet defensive rebound	10	9
5:43	LeBron James blocks Amen Thompson 's 1-foot dunk	10	9
5:40	Luka Doncic defensive rebound	10	9
5:37	Luka Doncic makes 3-foot driving floating jump shot	12	9
5:18	Dillon Brooks misses 25-foot three point step back jumpshot	12	9
5:14	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	12	9
5:02	Rui Hachimura misses 27-foot three point jumper	12	9
4:57	Jalen Green defensive rebound	12	9
4:49	Dorian Finney-Smith blocks Fred VanVleet 's 4-foot driving layup	12	9
4:45	Dorian Finney-Smith defensive rebound	12	9
4:37	Dorian Finney-Smith misses 26-foot three point jumper	12	9
4:34	Jalen Green defensive rebound	12	9
4:28	Amen Thompson makes layup (Jalen Green assists)	12	11
4:08	Austin Reaves misses 25-foot three point pullup jump shot	12	11
4:05	Amen Thompson defensive rebound	12	11
4:00	Fred VanVleet misses 26-foot three point shot	12	11
3:57	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	12	11
3:55	Lakers Full timeout	12	11
3:55	Gabe Vincent enters the game for Austin Reaves	12	11
3:55	Jaxson Hayes enters the game for LeBron James	12	11
3:55	Jordan Goodwin enters the game for Rui Hachimura	12	11
3:55	Jabari Smith Jr. enters the game for Amen Thompson	12	11
3:55	Steven Adams enters the game for Dillon Brooks	12	11
3:55	Tari Eason enters the game for Alperen Sengun	12	11
3:47	Tari Eason shooting foul	12	11
3:47	Luka Doncic misses free throw 1 of 2	12	11
3:47	Lakers offensive team rebound	12	11
3:47	Luka Doncic makes free throw 2 of 2	13	11
3:30	Jalen Green misses 18-foot pullup jump shot	13	11
3:29	Lakers defensive team rebound	13	11
3:10	Dorian Finney-Smith misses 7-foot two point shot	13	11
3:09	Dorian Finney-Smith offensive rebound	13	11
3:06	Jordan Goodwin misses 13-foot two point shot	13	11
3:03	Steven Adams defensive rebound	13	11
2:55	Jalen Green misses two point shot	13	11
2:53	Luka Doncic defensive rebound	13	11
2:42	Jordan Goodwin misses 24-foot three point jumper	13	11
2:37	Gabe Vincent offensive rebound	13	11
2:36	Gabe Vincent misses 27-foot three point jumper	13	11
2:33	Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound	13	11
2:26	Fred VanVleet misses 18-foot step back jumpshot	13	11
2:21	Jordan Goodwin defensive rebound	13	11
2:11	Jaxson Hayes misses layup	13	11
2:08	Fred VanVleet defensive rebound	13	11
1:54	Fred VanVleet makes 27-foot three pointer	13	14
1:43	Tari Eason personal foul	13	14
1:43	Jarred Vanderbilt enters the game for Jaxson Hayes	13	14
1:43	LeBron James enters the game for Jordan Goodwin	13	14
1:43	Amen Thompson enters the game for Jalen Green	13	14
1:43	Alperen Sengun enters the game for Fred VanVleet	13	14
1:34	Gabe Vincent misses 24-foot three point jumper	13	14
1:30	Steven Adams defensive rebound	13	14
1:22	Amen Thompson makes 6-foot driving floating jump shot	13	16
1:09	Luka Doncic misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot	13	16
1:05	Gabe Vincent offensive rebound	13	16
1:00	Dorian Finney-Smith makes 27-foot three point jumper (Luka Doncic assists)	16	16
46.1	Alperen Sengun misses 10-foot jumper	16	16
46.1	Rockets offensive team rebound	16	16
46.1	Dorian Finney-Smith loose ball foul	16	16
39.1	Amen Thompson misses 25-foot three point jumper	16	16
37.0	Lakers defensive team rebound	16	16
30.2	Luka Doncic misses 27-foot three point jumper	16	16
28.1	Tari Eason defensive rebound	16	16
11.0	Tari Eason makes 24-foot three point jumper (Amen Thompson assists)	16	19
5.1	Jarred Vanderbilt misses 3-foot two point shot	16	19
3.1	Steven Adams defensive rebound	16	19
2.0	Steven Adams misses 80-foot three point jumper	16	19
1.0	Rockets offensive team rebound	16	19
0.0	End of the 1st Quarter	16	19

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Game Information

Time, Location & Referees

Venue

crypto.com Arena

Los Angeles, CA

Date & Time

2:00 AM, April 1, 2025

Coverage

TNT, truTV, HBO Max, Spectrum Sports Net, Spectrum Sports Net +, Space City Home Network

Attendance

18,997

Referees

Josh Tiven, Tre Maddox, Brandon Schwab

2025-26 Southwest Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
San Antonio	43	16	.729	W11
Houston	37	22	.627	L1
Memphis	22	36	.379	W1
Dallas	21	38	.356	L2
New Orleans	19	42	.311	W4

2025-26 Pacific Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
LA Lakers	35	24	.593	W1
Phoenix	34	26	.567	W1
Golden State	31	29	.517	L1
LA Clippers	27	31	.466	L3
Sacramento	14	47	.230	W1

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Lakers hold off Rockets 104-98 with 6 3-pointers apiece from Dorian Finney-Smith, Gabe Vincent

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