Houston Rockets Upset Lakers, 112-97, In Game 1 Of Their Second-Round Series

LeBron James said there's no way to prepare for the Houston Rockets' speed.

You have to experience it.

And then adjust.

After losing Game 1 of the Lakers' second-round playoff series against the Rockets, 112-97, he compared them to the St. Louis Rams of 1999, 2000, and 2001, nicknamed the “Greatest Show on Turf.”

"People always said how you’d scout ‘em and scout ‘em and scout ‘em -- until they got on the field and they seen Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt and Marshall Faulk and Az Hakim and all those guys," James said. "And then it was OK, we need to play them again. There’s no way you can simulate that speed."

The Rockets were energized on both sides of the court Friday. They entered the game with the highest-rated defense in the NBA bubble this postseason. And their offense was as sharp and dangerous as ever.

The Lakers never led after the first quarter. The Rockets used a 16-3 run in the fourth quarter to turn a six-point lead into a 19-point advantage with 7:15 left. James didn't score in the fourth quarter, while Anthony Davis didn't make a shot for the first nearly seven minutes of it.

But James said the Lakers' sloppiness was their biggest downfall.

"We had 17 turnovers for 27 points versus a team that’s a 100-yard dash team," said James, who had 20 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and four turnovers. "You cannot turn the ball over like that. And it’s just that simple. It starts with myself being the primary ball handler and it trickles down to everyone else. So we got to do a complete turnaround going into Game 2."

That's not the only area they need an adjustment.

James Harden was sent to the free-throw line 11 times in the first half and finished with a game-high 36 points.

"We were careless fouling him and that definitely gets him going," Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. "We know this about James, and if you’re going to beat the Houston Rockets, you’ve got to play him without fouling."

Russell Westbrook had 24 points and Eric Gordon added 23 points.

The Lakers' height advantage didn't even give them an edge Friday. Both teams finished with 41 rebounds.

Davis said the Lakers have to do a better job of exploiting that.

"They know they’re undersized," said Davis, who had 25 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. "They’ve been playing this way for most of the year and they do a good of boxing out, making sure that teams don’t kill 'em on the offensive glass. So we gotta do a better job of getting rebounds and continuing to play big. We gotta punish them on both ends of the glass."

Rajon Rondo returned Friday after missing nearly eight weeks because of a fractured right thumb and back spasms. In his first game since March 10, he finished with eight points, four assists, three rebounds and four turnovers in 24 minutes.

Not the most impressive stat-line, but Vogel said he'll make a difference against the Rockets.

"It is a challenge working in a new player at this stage in the playoffs," Vogel said. "But Rajon is one of the smartest players in the league and obviously our guys’ IQ raises when he’s on the court, so he’s definitely going to help us this series."

The Lakers entered Game 1 after having five days off. They clinched their first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday in five games, while the Rockets had only one day in between Game 7 and this series.

Vogel said that worked in the Rockets' favor.

"The Game 7 versus a team with rest, I’ve always felt the team that played a Game 7 has a slight advantage," Vogel said. "But we can’t look at that as any type of excuse. We’re not an excuse team."

James said the Lakers will be ready next time around.

They were a beat too slow.

And that can't happen again.

"How do you adjust to a team’s speed?" James asked. "You understand that it’s not just about the legs moving, it’s about the hands moving, as well. They’re great with their hands, you understand that if you have the turnover, you can’t really react, you have to get back, quick twitch. Quick twitch plays because they’re very, extremely fast. Especially when Russ gets it. You adjust to that by playing against it."