Luke Kennard scored 27 points and LeBron James added 19 points with 13 assists as the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers earned a 107-98 victory over the visiting Houston Rockets on Saturday in Game 1 of a Western Conference first-round playoff series.
Deandre Ayton scored 19 points with 11 rebounds and Marcus Smart added 15 points with eight assists as the fourth-seeded Lakers won with leading scorers Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) watching from the bench.
In just his seventh start since joining the Lakers from the Atlanta Hawks at the trade deadline, Kennard went 9 of 13 from the floor and 5 of 5 from 3-point range while delivering a season high in points to fill the scoring void at guard.
Alperen Sengun scored 19 points while Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard each added 17 for the fifth-seeded Rockets, who were playing without leading scorer Kevin Durant (knee).
Jabari Smith Jr. scored 16 points with 12 rebounds and Tari Eason also had 16 points for Houston, which has lost three consecutive road games to Los Angeles since the middle of March.
The Lakers shot 60.6% from the floor and 52.6% from 3-point range, while the Rockets shot 37.6% and 33.3% respectively.
Kennard helped put the Rockets away with three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. His second of the final period capped a 13-3 run and gave the Lakers an 88-72 lead with 7:58 remaining.
James made a turnaround hook inside with 4:43 remaining to put Los Angeles up 96-80. The 41-year-old added a fadeaway jumper with 2:57 remaining for a 98-84 lead.
Houston was within 100-91 with 1:40 remaining on a dunk from Thompson before Ayton put the game away for Los Angeles on a three-point play with 1:04 left for a 105-93 lead.
The Lakers shot 70.6% from the floor in the fourth quarter and 56.2% in the second half.
The Rockets finished with a 44-35 rebounding advantage.
The Lakers got off to a fast start, leading by eight points in the first quarter, when James had eight assists, and took a 33-29 lead after the opening period. Los Angeles led 50-48 at the half on 64.7% shooting from the floor as Ayton scored 12 points. Sengun had 11 at the half for Houston.
