Schedule and 2004 Results
Regular Season Records: L.A. Lakers 56-26, Houston 45-37
Game 1 on Saturday, 17 Apr: Houston loses at L.A. Lakers, 72-pts-71
Game 2 on Monday, 19 Apr: Houston loses at L.A. Lakers, 98-pts-84
Game 3 on Friday, 23 Apr: L.A. Lakers lose at Houston, 102-pts-91
Game 4 on Sunday, 25 Apr: L.A. Lakers win at Houston, 92-pts-88 (OT)
Game 5 on Wednesday, 28 Apr: Houston loses at L.A. Lakers, 97-pts-78

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 5: With best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 926 back in Los Angeles for Game 5, the Los Angeles Lakers hosted and defeated the Houston Rockets 97-pts-78, thereby capturing a 4-games-1 series 926 victory. The Lakers thus improve their overall best-of-7 NBA playoff series record to 53-24 and their best-of-7 NBA Preliminary-round series record to 2-0. The Houston Rockets thus see their overall best-of-7 NBA playoff series record fall to 12-10 and their best-of-7 NBA Preliminary-round series record fall to 0-1. The win order for series 926 was WWLWW. Series 926 thus becomes the second NBA Preliminary round series, the 33rd NBA playoff series (all rounds), and the 77th MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series (all rounds) to follow the WWLWW win order.

After Game 4: The Los Angeles Lakers visited and defeated the Houston Rockets 92-pts-88 after one overtime period. With this best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 926 Game 4 victory, the Lakers take a 3-games-1 series 926 lead. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-1, the Los Angeles Lakers have a 25-0 series record and a 16-9 Game 5 record. When trailing an NBA best-of-7 playoff series 3-games-1, the Houston Rockets have a 1-4 series record and a 4-1 Game 5 record. NBA teams trailing a best-of-7 playoff series 3-games-1 at site order VVHH from 1947 through 2003 (such as the 2004 Houston Rockets) have a 1-93 series record. The sole winner: The Houston Rockets, in best-of-7 series 691 (a 1995 NBA Quarterfinals round battle vs. the Phoenix Suns). Those 1995 Houston Rockets thus set a favorable precedent for their 2004 counterparts.

After Game 3: With best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 926 in Houston for Games 3-4, the Houston Rockets pressed their home-court advantage to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 102-pts-91 in Game 3, thus narrowing the Lakers' series lead to 2-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-1, the Los Angeles Lakers have a 29-4 series record and an 18-15 Game 4 record; when trailing 2-games-1, the Houston Rockets have a 3-7 series record and a 5-5 Game 4 record. The three Houston series victories in this situation occurred in the 1977, 1994, and 1995 NBA Quarterfinals.

After Game 2: Best-of-7 series 926 Game 2 saw the Los Angeles Lakers host and defeat the Houston Rockets 98-pts-84, thereby taking a 2-games-nil lead in their 2004 NBA Preliminary-round playoff series. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 32-1 (.970); when trailing 2-games-nil, the Houston Rockets have a 2-8 series record. The sole Lakers' series loss upon having led 2-games-nil occurred in best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 215 (the 1969 NBA Finals vs. the Boston Celtics); since that loss, the Los Angeles Lakers have won 25 consecutive NBA best-of-7 playoff series upon taking a 2-games-nil lead. The Houston Rockets won best-of-7 series 668 (the 1994 NBA Quarterfinals vs. the Phoenix Suns) and 691 (the 1995 NBA Quarterfinals vs. the Phoenix Suns) after trailing in each series 2-games-nil - the Rockets would proceed to win the NBA Championship in both 1994 and 1995.

After Game 1: The Los Angeles Lakers hosted and defeated the Houston Rockets 72-pts-71 to take a 1-game-nil lead in best-of-7 playoff series 926. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil, the Los Angeles Lakers have a 44-7 overall series record and a 33-18 Game 2 record; when down 1-game-nil, the Houston Rockets have a 4-9 overall series record and a 3-10 Game 2 record.

Pre-series assessment: In the 2003-04 regular season, Los Angeles finished 11 games ahead of Houston. From 1947 through 2003, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by 11 regular-season games, they have posted a 12-4 (.750) best-of-7 series record in those series against those opponents, with an active five-series winning streak. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 series 926 is the 22nd best-of-7 playoff series for the Houston Rockets and the 77th for the Los Angeles Lakers. Los Angeles last played in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series in 2003; Houston last did so in 1997. In best-of-7 playoff series, Houston has a 12-9 series record, a 0-0 Prelim-round series record, and an 8-13 Game 1 record, while Los Angeles has a 52-24 record, a 1-0 Prelim-round record, and a 51-25 Game 1 record. Series 926 is the second best-of-7 meeting between Houston and Los Angeles; the first was series 471, a 1986 NBA Semifinals series won by Houston in five games.