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Luka Doncic (40 points) and LeBron James (30) lead Lakers to win over Rockets

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Luka Doncic (40 points) and LeBron James (30) lead Lakers to win over Rockets

The combination of Luka Doncic and LeBron James was overpowering and enthralling for all to see during the Lakers’ dynamic 124-116 win over the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on Wednesday.

Doncic was a rebound shy of a triple-double with 40 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.

James was a force with 30 points, missing just one of his 14 shots and adding five rebounds and two assists.

They were the main reasons why the Lakers extended their winning streak to seven straight games and helped them take the three-game series over the Rockets, 2-1, winning both games here, one on Monday night.

The beauty of the night was when Doncic threw a no-look lob pass to James for a dunk and then when Doncic drilled a three-pointer with 58.4 seconds left for a 120-111 Lakers lead.

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Doncic yelled at the crowd and ran down court shaking his head. When the Rockets called a time out, the Lakers bench all ran over to Doncic, hugging him, slapping him and James nudging him for a job very well done.

The Lakers now have a 1-½ game lead over Minnesota for the third seed in the Western Conference.

James was fouled by Jabari Smith Jr. on a break-away layup, forcing him down on the court and holding his right elbow.

James was awarded two free throws with 5:39 remaining, making one to tie the score at 105-105.

Doncic then took over when James went to the bench for a rest.

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Doncic’s jumper gave the Lakers a two-point lead and later his pass to Rui Hachimura for a corner three-pointer gave the Lakers one-point lead after Amen Thompson had scored for the Rockets

Doncic drilled a three-pointer for a 113-109 Lakers lead with 3:12 left.

James had a steal in the first quarter and then threw down a dunk with Alperen Segen chasing him, leading to James to stare at Segun as he ran back down court, drawing cheers from the fans in awe at witnessing the 23-year veteran still making highlight plays at 41.

Early in the second quarter, James gave the fans even more to cheer about, catching a high lob pass from Marcus Smart and throwing down a one-handed dunk to oohs and aahs.

Luka Doncic celebrates after making a three-pointer against the Houston Rockets in the first half.

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(David J. Phillip / Associated Press)

James wasn’t done, taking a pass from Jake LaRavia and throwing down another dunk later in the second quarter that brought the crowd out of its seats. That play gave the Lakers a 13-point lead.

James was at it again with a tip dunk off an Ayton missed shot late in the second quarter.

By the end of the first half, James had made all eight of his shots and scored 18 points in carrying the Lakers to a 12-point lead after the first 24 minutes of the game.

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James was still dizzying while playing in his 1,610th career NBA game, leaving him one shy of the all-time record held by Robert Parish (1,611).

The Lakers not only had to deal with a Rockets team looking for revenge from Monday night’s loss, but also had to contend with a Houston team that got All-Star center Segun back after missing the previous game with low back pain.

Even more, the Lakers knew that rebounding would be an issue for them just like it was in the first game.

But the Lakers also knew their defense was strong and their offense was powerful.

That was the case in the first quarter, when the Lakers opened a 35-26 lead behind 13 points from Doncic, eight from James and six from Ayton.

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Their defense forced the Rockets into four turnovers, two by Kevin Durant.

“I just think regardless of what our coverage is, we just got to do a better job of boxing out, like actually physically boxing out and not just looking at a guy and then turn and look at the ball,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said pregame. “We’ve got to have some contact. That hurt us. We still won scoring-opportunity (points) by seven, I think, because we did such a good job of forcing them into turnovers. And I thought, offensively, when we used our throw-a-heads, we got some really good stuff in transition. (We) missed some threes in transition. Overall, we were 16 points under expected from three. There was segments of the game where I didn’t love what we did offensively, but that’s the nature of playing this team. They’re gonna muck things up.”

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WWE star Chelsea Green reveals she underwent ‘heart procedure’ to address SVT

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WWE star Chelsea Green reveals she underwent ‘heart procedure’ to address SVT

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WWE star Chelsea Green revealed Monday she underwent a “heart procedure” as she shared photos of herself and husband Matt Cardona from her hospital bed.

Green said doctors caught her SVT. The Mayo Clinic says that SVT, or supraventricular tachycardia, is a “type of irregular heartbeat, also called an arrhythmia. It’s a very fast or erratic heartbeat that affects the heart’s upper chambers.”

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Chelsea Green enters the ring during Monday Night RAW at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich., on July 28, 2025. (Rich Freeda/WWE)

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The two-time WWE women’s United States champion said she had been dealing with the issue for 10 years.

“After 10 years, doctors finally caught my SVT and I was able to get a heart procedure done! 3 hours later and I’m on the mend,” she wrote on Instagram.

On Tuesday, she added on X: “My latest episode during WrestleMania pushed my resting heart rate to 228 for almost 15 minutes. Yesterday, Dr. Girgis spent 3 hours working on me… and I had to be awake for the last hour of the procedure!! “

Chelsea Green waves during SmackDown at Ball Arena in Denver, Colo., on Nov. 28, 2025. (Michael Owens/WWE)

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She said the procedure was minimally invasive and expected to be back to work soon.

Green has had her share of bad luck over the last few months. She suffered an ankle injury that has kept her sidelined for several months, keeping her off the WrestleMania 42 card.

In February, Green and Ethan Page dropped the AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship to Mr. Iguana and Lola Vice.

Chelsea Green looks on during SmackDown at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Fla., on Feb. 20, 2026. (Craig Ambrosio/WWE)

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Pro wrestling fans are eagerly awaiting her return to the ring.

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Prep sports roundup: Jacob Madrid launches three home runs in Sherman Oaks Notre Dame win

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Prep sports roundup: Jacob Madrid launches three home runs in Sherman Oaks Notre Dame win

On the final day of the regular season for Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, catcher Jacob Madrid put together a game to remember. The senior hit three home runs in a 7-1 road victory over Loyola. The Knights claimed third place in the Mission League.

Madrid raised his season total to 11. He had a solo home run in the second inning to right field, a three-run home run in the third to right field and a solo home run in the sixth to left field.

Not even major leaguer Giancarlo Stanton was able to hit three home runs in a game during his two years playing for the Knights.

“It was surprising because I was honestly trying for line drives the opposite way,” Madrid said.

Madrid, an Oregon commit, said the Knights are ready for the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs. Pairings will be announced Saturday at 1 p.m.

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Orange Lutheran 6, Mater Dei 5: The Lancers won it on a walk-off RBI double by Eric Zdunek in the bottom of the ninth. Mater Dei had a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the eighth with two out when Ricardo Hurtado hit a fly ball that couldn’t be caught, resulting in a tying run. CJ Weinstein homered for Orange Lutheran. Hamilton Friedberg and Jordan Kurz each had three hits. The loss leaves Servite in third place in the Trinity League.

Harvard-Westlake 10, Crespi 0: Ethan Price and Louis Lappe each had three hits for Harvard-Westlake, which clinched at least a share of the Mission League title with one game to play.

Sierra Canyon 6, Bishop Alemany 5: Home runs by Cody Gallegos and Mikhal Johnson rallied the Trailblazers, who clinched second place in the Mission League. Brody Thompson hit a home run for Alemany, which finished in fourth place.

Chaminade 1, St. Francis 0: The Eagles got their second 1-0 victory of the week. Jackson Schroeder and Bronson Jackson combined for the shutout. Jackson also drove in the only run.

El Camino Real 1, Granada Hills 0: Jackson Sellz threw a three-hit shutout and Ryan Glassman drove in the game’s only run with an RBI single in the sixth. The Royals, after being swept by Birmingham last week, needed a win to stay in the running for a No. 2 playoff seed.

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Etiwanda 3, Upland 1: The Baseline League champions continue to move up the Division 1 rankings. Michael Aleman went the distance, striking out nine. Luke Severns hit a two-run home run.

Servite 1, Cypress 0: The Friars had three pitchers combine for the shutout. Mikey Cabral drove in the game’s only run and finished with two hits.

Santa Margarita 9, Capistrano Valley 0: Cooper Holland had a home run and Tyler George struck out eight while allowing no hits and no walks in 3 1/3 innings.

Covina 10, Hacienda Heights Wilson 0: Donovan Johnson threw a no-hitter with 11 strikeouts.

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Troy 4, South Pasadena 3: Troy coach Scott Pearson earned his 600th coaching victory and his son, Jaden, led off the sixth inning with a double and scored the winning run.

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Murrieta Mesa 13, Chaparral 0: Lilly Hauser threw a five-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts. She also hit a home run.

Orange Lutheran 3, Santa Margarita 0: Rylee Silva threw a complete game, and the Lancers won the Trinity League title.

Mater Dei 9, JSerra 5: The Monarchs handed a rare defeat to JSerra pitcher Liliana Escobar. Savanah Duncan hit a grand slam.

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Why the Pistons at -3.5 is the play as the NBA Playoffs second round gets underway in Detroit

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Why the Pistons at -3.5 is the play as the NBA Playoffs second round gets underway in Detroit

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The NBA Playoffs had their second round begin Monday. We were treated to two games, and one was significantly better than the other. That probably should be the expectation for Tuesday’s slate as well. Regardless of how the game goes, if we can cash some betting slips, that’s really the main goal here. I expect the Cavaliers vs. Pistons to be a more entertaining game tonight, and I have a bet for us on the game.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had a bit of a makeover this season, but the first round of the playoffs was essentially the same outcome they’ve always had. They exchanged Darius Garland for James Harden and Dennis Schroder. That didn’t happen in the same trade, but it did give the team a new look after starting the year with Garland, Lonzo Ball, and DeAndre Hunter. This team will only go as far as Harden and Donovan Mitchell will take it.

Cleveland Cavaliers All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and James Harden talk during Game 2 in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs vs. the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Ohio. (David Dermer/Imagn Images)

In the first round, the Cavaliers looked like a really bad team. They won four games at home and lost all three road games. In fairness to them, they had at least two of those games in Toronto that were winnable. While they won games at home, they didn’t exactly dominate the Raptors. Game 7 was fairly sweat free, with a 12-point win, but they were fortunate not to have Brandon Ingram suit up for Toronto. I see both Evan Mobley and Harden as the keys to winning this series for the Cavaliers.

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The Detroit Pistons were given a bit of a wake-up call. They came into the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, but they looked anything but the part of a dominant team in the opening round. They hosted the Magic and lost the opener. Then they lost two of the next three games, going down 3-1 in the series. They won, as expected in Game 5 at home, but Game 6 was wild. They were down and looked out of it in the second half. The Magic scored just 19 points in the second half, and Detroit forced Game 7.

Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham dribbles the ball while Indiana Pacers guard Ethan Thompson defends during the second half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind., on April 12, 2026. (Trevor Ruszkowski/Imagn Images)

In Game 7, the Pistons locked in and were in control from the tip. It was an epic collapse from the Magic, and probably a disaster that cost their coach his job. The Pistons ended up winning by 22. They extended their coach as a result. Interestingly enough, JB Bickerstaff, the coach, was fired by Cleveland in part due to a lack of playoff success. He should be very familiar with the Cavs players and their strengths and weaknesses. I’d expect him to be an X-factor if he can exploit the weaknesses.

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In this series, you have to expect that Mitchell and Cade Cunningham will cancel each other out from a scoring perspective. Jarrett Allen and Mobley will provide a great variety of defense for Jalen Duren. The Pistons’ advantage will be Tobias Harris. For the Cavaliers, Mobley will be a tough matchup. Harden is also a guy who might be able to get some mismatches.

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Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons smiles after the game against the Toronto Raptors at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich., on Dec. 30, 2023. (Chris Schwegler/NBAE)

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This is the tightest series in terms of pricing, with the Pistons being slight favorites. Three of the four games were very tight in the regular season, with all three being decided by four or fewer points. They both won two games, one on the road and one at home. I don’t expect this to be a defensive series. It isn’t the game either of them really wants to play. I think the Pistons are locked in, though. I haven’t seen much that’s great from the Cavaliers on the road in the playoffs. Give me the Pistons -3.5 here.

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For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024 

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