Rockets Beat Lakers 99-93 in Game 5, Trail 3-2

The Houston Rockets staved off elimination with a 99-93 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena, trimming the Lakers' lead to 3-2.

Austin Reaves returned from a Grade 2 left oblique strain that sidelined him for the previous four playoff games and the final five of the regular season. The injury occurred on April 2 in Oklahoma City. Coming off the bench, Reaves played 34 minutes and finished with 22 points, six assists and four rebounds. He shot 4 of 16 from the field, including 2 of 8 from three-point range, and 12 of 13 from the free-throw line. Reaves entered with 5:39 left in the first quarter to a standing ovation and scored eight points in the period, but struggled later, going 1 of 8 from the field in the fourth quarter as the Lakers rallied from a 13-point deficit but fell short.

LeBron James led the Lakers with 25 points and seven assists, but the team appeared stagnant offensively after leading the series 3-0. Luke Kennard, who averaged 17.8 points over the first four games, managed just one point on 0-for-4 shooting in 31 minutes.

The Rockets, missing Kevin Durant for...