The Los Angeles Lakers have punched their ticket to the second round of the NBA playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Lakers took care of business on Friday night with a big win over the Houston Rockets on the road.
The Rockets had the momentum heading into Game 6 on Friday after winning two straight. Houston, who was without Kevin Durantdue to injury, crawled back in the series after going down 3-0. However, they failed to force a Game 7 after Friday’s season-ending loss.
LeBron James led the way with a game-high 28 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves chipped in with 21 and 15 points, respectively.
The schedule for the Lakers-Thunder series has been announced, and L.A. has little time to prepare for its matchup against the defending champs.
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The No. 1 seed Thunder will have home-court advantage against the No. 4 seed Lakers. The series will start on Tuesday at Paycom Center.
Below is the complete schedule for the Lakers-Thunder Western Conference semifinal series.
- Game 1: Lakers at Thunder, Tuesday, May 5
- Game 2: Lakers at Thunder, Thursday, May 7
- Game 3: Thunder at Lakers, Saturday, May 9
- Game 4: Thunder at Lakers, Monday, May 11
- Game 5(If necessary): Lakers at Thunder, Wednesday, May 13
- Game 6(If necessary): Thunder at Lakers, Saturday, May 16
- Game 7 (If necessary): Lakers at Thunder, Monday, May 18
OKC enters this series well-rested. This is after they swept the Phoenix Suns in the first round, 4-0. Game 4 of that series was on Monday, giving the Thunder seven full days of rest heading into Game 1 against the Lakers.
The Thunder dominated the Lakers in the regular season. They won all four games with an average margin of 29.3 points.
James and Co. will be looking to flip the switch starting Tuesday in Game 1.
