1 game, none went to overtime. Biggest comeback: LAL trailed HOU by 3 after the first quarter and won 97–78.
Final · R1 · G5
HOU78
LAL97
Bars under each score: who led after each quarter, from the winner's side. winner ahead behind behind in a 10+ point comeback tied
The lead · First round · Game 5 · HOU @ LAL
Kobe Bryant scores 31 in Lakers win over Houston
Final: 97–78. Kobe Bryant added 6 rebounds and 10 assists. Lakers win the first round series 4–1.
Game flow · LAL margin at each break
Quarter-end scores only (4 points), so swings inside a period don't show.
By quarter
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOU | 27 | 21 | 9 | 21 | 78 |
| LAL | 24 | 23 | 25 | 25 | 97 |
Who led
Kobe BryantLAL31 PTS · 6 REB · 10 AST
Karl MaloneLAL18 PTS · 9 REB · 5 AST
Jim JacksonHOU17 PTS · 5 REB · 2 AST
Steve FrancisHOU16 PTS · 9 REB · 5 AST
Fantasy angleRecent playoff games against each player's regular-season average.
Heating up
Karl MaloneLAL
+8.8points, last 3 playoff games vs reg. season avg
Points per game
22.0 points a game over his last three playoff games, against 13.2 in the regular season (42 games). Today: 18 points in 32 minutes.
Losing minutes
Rick FoxLAL
−11.3minutes, last 3 playoff games vs reg. season avg
Minutes per game
11.0 minutes a game over his last three playoff games, against 22.3 in the regular season (38 games). Today: 2 points in 5 minutes.
Stepped-up role
Kelvin CatoHOU
+8.8minutes, today vs reg. season avg
Minutes per game
34 minutes today, against 25.2 a game in the regular season (69 games). Line: 5 points, 12 rebounds, 0 assists.
Top performances
Kobe Bryant leads the day with 31
Sparkline: points in his last 10 games, tonight in pink. Black tag: most points in a game this season to date, or in his career when his whole career is in our box scores (after 5+ games). Plus/minus: points tonight against his average before tonight.
Kobe BryantLAL vs HOU · W
24.4 PPG playoffs to date · +8.2 vs his playoff average before tonight
31 PTS · 6 REB · 10 ASTKarl MaloneLAL vs HOU · W
18.0 PPG playoffs to date · +0.0 vs his playoff average before tonight
18 PTS · 9 REB · 5 ASTJim JacksonHOU @ LAL · L
14.8 PPG playoffs to date · +2.8 vs his playoff average before tonight
17 PTS · 5 REB · 2 ASTSteve FrancisHOU @ LAL · L
19.2 PPG playoffs to date · −4.0 vs his playoff average before tonight
16 PTS · 9 REB · 5 ASTCuttino MobleyHOU @ LAL · L
14.4 PPG playoffs to date · +2.0 vs his playoff average before tonight
16 PTS · 2 REB · 0 ASTShaquille O'NealLAL vs HOU · W
16.2 PPG playoffs to date · −5.2 vs his playoff average before tonight
12 PTS · 9 REB · 5 AST