Trevor Ariza made an impressive hustle play to save a loose ball, preventing an Aaron Brooks fastbreak layup.

On the next possession, Trevor Ariza blocked Aaron Brooks' shot, showing strong defense from the Lakers.

Kobe Bryant threw up a shot while drawing contact, trying to draw a foul late in the third quarter.

Andrew Bynum had an impressive dunk while running the floor in transition, showing his athleticism.

Andrew Bynum grabbed an offensive rebound and scored, displaying his strength inside.

Kobe Bryant made a tough shot late in the shot clock despite Shane Battier's hand in his face, demonstrating his skill.

Trevor Ariza slammed home an alley-oop dunk, energizing the Lakers bench.

The Lakers defense forced another Rockets turnover, maintaining their strong defensive intensity.

Kobe Bryant knocked down a three-pointer against Shane Battier's defense, extending the Lakers lead further.

 Doesn't get much better than this a game seven again an unlikely one. Let's look at Houston

 They've done some amazing things just to get here

 But despite all the positives there not many people outside of their locker room mark who feel they can win

 What do you think? Well, I don't pick them to win the ball game

 But this is a team that all they have to do is play hard play smart

 Make sure they execute and have fun when you do those things. This is game seven coach anything can happen

 Yeah, the trick will be to stay close going into the fourth quarter to do that. They've got to handle the ball

 They've got to make threes and they have to keep Chuck Hayes out of foul trouble against the salt as to the Lakers so much

 Made about Kobe Bryant really cannot look to score Phil Jackson yesterday said he wants him to be a playmaker

 Jeff what kind of game does he need to have well?

 I would want him to be a playmaker by shooting 30 times if necessary to win

 He should play the entire game or until it's decided

 Well to me this has been a series of quick starts the team that jumps off early and gets it going you take a look

 At Kobe Bryant his numbers after losses is important for him to have a stamp on this ballgame from start to finish

 Let's take a look at our starting lineups presented by Taco Bell

 And the starts have been huge as Mark says

 First Chuck Hayes starting for Yao Ming and he is such an important part despite averaging just two points per game in the series

 He's their best low-post defender, but it goes with now and for the Lakers

 Andrew Biner will struggle coming back from the knee problems and the knee surgery

 He is still in the starting lineup tomorrow to both come off the bench a

 veteran crew officiating here this afternoon led by Joey Crawford Mike Callahan and Danny Crawford as

 Does it play is it really not much of a difference in terms of your mindset once the game starts?

 Well, you don't have as much rest as you normally would have because you didn't sleep all night long

 But you just treated like it's a regular ballgame go out

 Don't try to do too much as a point Trevor reason gets inside and gets tripped

 Scullers first Jeff you coached in game seven

 Because for Houston for example, the last game was an elimination game as well

 So an elimination game in itself may bring about a tighter rotation, but the preparation is very similar

 Again, Yao Ming was injured at the end of game three and done for the rest of the season

 Everybody thought the Rockets were done, but they may turned into amazing blowout performance in game four came back here in game five

 I've lost by 40 and everyone again thought the Rockets were done

 They showed their resiliency by winning game six and here we are on a Sunday afternoon for game seven

 Nobody expecting to be in this situation, but finish the deal off don't just be satisfied with being in the game

 Kobe Bryant's first shot won't go. They actually booed during the national anthem

 It's not that they're not patriotic that line about Rockets red glare

 They were very upset about it, but they created a wide open three off the high pick and roll

 Houston has to continue to pick and roll because it's the Lakers greatest weakness defensively

 Scullop like the soul the defense has been really up and down in the series since Kobe Bryant drives

 Two things right away to contest of the jump about power the soul stretching his defense and see Kobe Bryant in attack mode

 The tights and matchups another deflection Fisher with the steel

 The soul his past deflected out of bounds

 Good start defensively for LA. This was a rhythm jumper the other day in Houston all of a sudden

 You put a body closer to him you use that left and you're able to block this

 Jump shot attempt to score. Well, Jackson says their activity level defensively has been up and down

 That's a hard way of saying we just haven't played consistent

 With a right place at a right time and it's five nothing something we talked about we're seeing much more power to soul facing

 Right and the ability to try to go by him on the dribble you have a much better chance to do that

 The kind of a toll is to you heard it about careful of the early big start for the Lakers Brooks that of his hands

 I think he's gonna want to time out for an 8-0 run to start for the Lakers

 Welcome back to LA game seven a quick start for the Lakers 8-0 as we welcome in Doris Burke

 As you mentioned in the open the questions are out the course of this series is what on earth of the Rockets still doing

 Here through all of the injuries they face the trade of Rafer Alston and then the gunshot to Carl Landry

 I asked Shane Baddie. How does his team continue to persevere? He said two things one

 We've got enough divergent personalities on this team who falls in his mind that we never get too high never get too low

 He said we can count on two things as one our test pulls the trigger on a three said one

 We will focus on the task and him regardless of who's in uniform and two we will give a great effort

 They're gonna need some resilience in here

 To start hitting some shots as well goes our tests as Gasol call for foul missing his first two from downtown

 He's now three for his last 22 in the last three plus games

 Much more effective download it becomes a point where you just have to stop shooting him, right? I

 Think he's the guy that can create offense, but he has to trust other guys Aaron Brooke in picking roles can make the game

 Each team has been off the quick start remember game six

 It was 17 21 to 3 Houston and now just the complete opposite is the soul shot won't go stole of the rebound

 To me though Houston got off the good start again

 Where they got blown out? It's when Chuck days got foul trouble right now to me keep putting Aaron Brooks in the picture more

 For five now Fisher who's been struggling in the series hard drive won't go

 That's gonna be called Ryan trying to tip it in and got pushed from behind by Aaron Brooks

 And the Lakers will take it out of bounds

 And I like the Lakers watching them early they're playing with a sense of urgency when they play this way the Rockets have no chance

 Of beating talk about not giving up on plays Kobe Bryant chasing down the second shot opportunity

 That was Kobe Bryant pushing Aaron Brooks

 There's a reason looking down low our test on a reason

 Get so involved in the game in the post where he abused them the last game at 14 points early Brooks nice move

 He still haven't scored we played four minutes Fisher with a hand in his face way off the mark

 He has really struggled shooting the ball in this series

 And it's struggling guarding Aaron Brooks

 Daddy has made Ryan work for his stuff. Sometimes you just can only do so much as bottom shot long go and score another rebound

 One thing you don't want to do when a team has a tough time getting it going early

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