Russell Westbrook struggles with shots, turnovers as Lakers tie series

“Right now I’m just running around,” Westbrook said after a Game 2 loss. “I’ve got to look at film and figure out how to be effective.”

All-Star guard Russell Westbrook struggled mightily in Game 2 of Houston’s second-round playoff series versus Los Angeles, making just four of 15 shots (23.5%) in a 117-109 win (box score) by the Lakers.

Westbrook also had a game-high seven turnovers, and the Rockets were -14 in his 33 minutes. All other starters (James Harden, Robert Covington, Eric Gordon, and P.J. Tucker) had positive plus/minus differentials.

Westbrook’s poor night wasted a hot shooting night by the other four starters, who each made at least four 3-pointers on 50% or better shooting from behind the arc. All scored at least 17 points.

“Right now I’m just running around,” said Westbrook, who is in his fifth game back after missing several weeks with a right quad injury. “I’ve got to look at film and figure out how to be effective.”

Regarding the turnovers, Westbrook said:

Some of it is my fault, some of it is missed calls. But it’s on me. I don’t point fingers at anybody else … I own my mistakes. I own what I do, and that’s that.

However, head coach Mike D’Antoni said postgame that Westbrook still has his full confidence moving forward. Keep in mind, Westbrook scored 24 points in Houston’s Game 1 win and was a key part of the success.

“We’re not going to win anything without Russell,” D’Antoni said. “That’s not even a question. He’s going to break through it. He’s more upset than anybody. He’s a great, great player. He’ll be fine.”

“Russ will be fine,” Harden said of Westbrook, when asked about his struggles. “He’s great. Not worried about him. “The great thing about Russ is that he does other things to impact the game other than scoring.”

To Harden’s point, Westbrook did lead the team with 13 rebounds.

Harden was limited to 27 points in Game 2 after scoring 36 in Game 1, with the Lakers sending additional traps and double-teams his way. That led to open 3-pointers for his teammates, which most connected on… except for Westbrook. While Westbrook was 1-of-7 on 3-pointers (14.3%), the rest of the Rockets were 21-of-46 (45.7%).

For the Rockets, it was Westbrook’s first time to shoot more than five 3-pointers in a single game since early January.

All-Star forwards Anthony Davis (34 points, 10 rebounds) and LeBron James (28 points, 11 rebounds) led the Lakers in the Game 2 victory, while Markieff Morris and Kyle Kuzma provided an unexpected lift off the bench with a combined 29 points on 80% shooting from the field.

The Lakers outscored the Rockets by 16 points in the first quarter and led by as many as 21 in the first half. While Houston turned the game around and led by as many as five late in the third quarter, the energy they had to expend in the comeback eventually seemed to catch up with them. Los Angeles won the decisive fourth quarter, 27-17.

“They just hit us in the mouth, and we did not match their intensity,” D’Antoni said. “When you’re down 20, everything has to go right.”

Harden noted that the Rockets were caught early in the game by a new zone defense from the Lakers, which they didn’t see in Game 1. However, he thought they adjusted well to it as the game moved along.

Game 3 between the Rockets and top-seeded Lakers is scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. Central tip-off on Tuesday night, with a national TV broadcast on TNT. “I didn’t think we were going to sweep them,” D’Antoni said after the Game 2 setback. “Now, it’s a best-of-five series.”

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