Rockets Take Off On Lakers

The Houston Rockets are in the playoffs, the Los Angeles Lakers are floundering.

Cuttino Mobley came out firing and Scottie Pippen had 26 points and six steals as the Rockets built a big lead and didn't lose it, snapping a three-game losing streak with a 102-80 victory over the Lakers on Monday night.

Houston clinched a playoff berth, while the Lakers lost their third straight game and their second straight by at least 20 points to fall 1 1/2 games behind Houston in the race for fourth place in the conference and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

"I was thinking `kill,"' Mobley said. "We definitely had something to prove. They beat us twice out there and they were dunking and high-fiving while they were doing it. I was already mad about that and I knew this game was big for us too."

Los Angeles, which has lost six of eight games, never got the deficit below double figures after the Rockets took charge.

"There were flashes of us being able to do what we're capable of doing, but it wasn't nearly enough," Lakers coach Kurt Rambis said. "Our defensive intensity was not there. I was very disappointed."

"What our coaching staff was hammering us about was playing defense," Pippen said. "Tonight we came out and made a conscious effort to play hard on defense. It makes things so much easier for us when we do."

"Today's game shows just how good a team we can be. We're a championship caliber team when we don't try to save anything for tomorrow."

Charles Barkley had 20 points and 16 rebounds and Hakeem Olajuwon had 14 points and eight rebounds.

"We weren't maing a statement, we just outplayed them tonight," Barkley said. "It doesn't mean anything. They beat us two times before and we just needed to win one. We struggled on the road but we played better tonight at home."

Pippen took over in the second quarter with 12 points that included three 3-pointers. The Rockets hit six of their first 12 3-point baskets but made only four of their next 19 and finished 10-for-31.

"No defense, no passion to play the game," Derek Harper said. "We didn't have any fire to come out and play a team that we are going to meet in the playoffs. How do I explain it? We've dug a real hole for ourselves."

"You have to play defense on a consistent basis and we play offense, but don't have a will to play defense on a consistent basis."

Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers with 19 points and 12 rebounds, Glen Rice added 16 points and Rick Fox had 12.

"I don't have much to say," O'Neal said. "We have to play better team ball and get out of this funk. We're in a funk and we have to do some soul searching. We have to come out and play and we haven't played in four or five games. We have to play with some heart."

Notes: Kobe Bryant opened the season with five straight double-doubles but he hasn't had one since March 14. ... The Rockets' victory was the 350th of coach Rudy Tomjanovich's coaching career, all with the Rockets. ... Houston's 31 3-pointers were a season high, beating their 30 attempts March 25 against Toronto.

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