Lakers stun Howard-less Rockets, win 2nd straight

Maybe Nick Young was onto something when he said his swag had rubbed off on his teammates.

After beginning the season 1-9, the Los Angeles Lakers have now won back-to-back games with Young back in the lineup. Young scored 16 points off the bench to help the Lakers take down the Rockets in Houston on Wednesday, 98-92.

The Rockets were without Dwight Howard, who was a last minute scratch due to a knee strain, but the Lakers were also on the second night of a back-to-back after winning in Atlanta on Tuesday, and trailed by as many as seven in the fourth quarter Wednesday.

Kobe Bryant continued his early season run of racking up points on poor shooting, finishing with a game-high 29 points on 10-of-28 shooting, although he did hit some big shots in the final frame.

James Harden led the way for the Rockets, posting 24 points, seven assists, four rebounds, a steal and a block, while Kostas Papanikolaou added 19 points off the bench in a losing effort.

At 9-3, the Rockets certainly don't need to panic, but even without Howard, a home loss to the Lakers is concerning given Houston's play of late.

The Rockets are a pedestrian 3-3 since starting the season 6-0, with two of those wins coming by way of squeakers over the lowly Philadelphia 76ers and the shorthanded Oklahoma City Thunder. The other win came against the 3-7 Minnesota Timberwolves.