Who’s Playing

Houston @ Los Angeles

Current Records: Houston 10-33; Los Angeles 19-24

What to Know

The Houston Rockets need to shore up a defense that is allowing 116.98 points per game before their contest Monday. They and the Los Angeles Lakers will face off at 10:30 p.m. ET Jan. 16 at Crypto.com Arena without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. If the matchup is anything like Houston’s 139-130 win from their previous meeting in March of last year, the scorekeeper will be kept real busy.

The Rockets’ and the Los Angeles Clippers’ contest on Sunday was up for grabs at halftime, but Houston was thoroughly outmatched 59-37 in the second half. Houston’s bruising 121-100 defeat to the Clippers might stick with them for a while. Houston’s loss shouldn’t obscure the performances of small forward Kenyon Martin Jr., who had 22 points along with nine rebounds, and small forward Eric Gordon, who had 24 points. Martin Jr.’s performance made up for a slower game against the Sacramento Kings this past Friday.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles was just a bucket short of a victory on Sunday and fell 113-112 to the Philadelphia 76ers. Small forward LeBron James put forth a good effort for the losing side as he almost dropped a triple-double on 35 points, ten assists, and eight boards.

Houston is expected to lose this next one by 6.5. Now might not be the best time to take the Rockets against the spread since they’ve let down bettors for the past six consecutive games.

These two teams will surely be fighting tooth and nail to get back into the win column after losses this week. Check back to see which squad is able to work their way into the win column.

How To Watch

• When: Monday at 10:30 p.m. ET
• Where: Crypto.com Arena — Los Angeles, California
• TV: NBATV
• Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
• Follow: CBS Sports App
• Ticket Cost: $25.00

Odds

The Lakers are a solid 6.5-point favorite against the Rockets, according to the latest NBA odds.

The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 6.5-point spread, and stayed right there.

Series History

Houston have won 16 out of their last 30 games against Los Angeles.

• Mar 09, 2022 – Houston 139 vs. Los Angeles 130
• Dec 28, 2021 – Los Angeles 132 vs. Houston 123
• Nov 02, 2021 – Los Angeles 119 vs. Houston 117
• Oct 31, 2021 – Los Angeles 95 vs. Houston 85
• May 12, 2021 – Los Angeles 124 vs. Houston 122
• Jan 12, 2021 – Los Angeles 117 vs. Houston 100
• Jan 10, 2021 – Los Angeles 120 vs. Houston 102
• Sep 12, 2020 – Los Angeles 119 vs. Houston 96
• Sep 10, 2020 – Los Angeles 110 vs. Houston 100
• Sep 08, 2020 – Los Angeles 112 vs. Houston 102
• Sep 06, 2020 – Los Angeles 117 vs. Houston 109
• Sep 04, 2020 – Houston 112 vs. Los Angeles 97
• Aug 06, 2020 – Houston 113 vs. Los Angeles 97
• Feb 06, 2020 – Houston 121 vs. Los Angeles 111
• Jan 18, 2020 – Los Angeles 124 vs. Houston 115
• Feb 21, 2019 – Los Angeles 111 vs. Houston 106
• Jan 19, 2019 – Houston 138 vs. Los Angeles 134
• Dec 13, 2018 – Houston 126 vs. Los Angeles 111
• Oct 20, 2018 – Houston 124 vs. Los Angeles 115
• Apr 10, 2018 – Houston 105 vs. Los Angeles 99
• Dec 31, 2017 – Houston 148 vs. Los Angeles 142
• Dec 20, 2017 – Los Angeles 122 vs. Houston 116
• Dec 03, 2017 – Houston 118 vs. Los Angeles 95
• Mar 15, 2017 – Houston 139 vs. Los Angeles 100
• Dec 07, 2016 – Houston 134 vs. Los Angeles 95
• Oct 26, 2016 – Los Angeles 120 vs. Houston 114
• Apr 10, 2016 – Houston 130 vs. Los Angeles 110
• Jan 17, 2016 – Houston 112 vs. Los Angeles 95
• Dec 17, 2015 – Houston 107 vs. Los Angeles 87
• Dec 12, 2015 – Houston 126 vs. Los Angeles 97