Jordan Farmar’s 3-pointer with 6:09 left pulled the Lakers to 86-84, but Battier drove for a layup 25 seconds later.

Battier and Jackson sank 3s as Houston surged to a 96-86 lead with 3:20 to play. With McGrady occupying the defense on one side of the floor, Alston drove for a layup and Jackson swished a jumper from the wing that made it 100-86, putting the game out of reach.

Lamar Odom scored 17 and Ronny Turiaf added 13 for the Lakers, who play at Dallas on Tuesday, the next leg on a rugged four-game road trip. Gasol is expected to sit out at least the next two games.

“Teams obviously can crowd the lane and go back to playing the type of defense against us that we’ve seen in the past,” Bryant said. “What we have to do is focus on the defensive end a lot more. And I’ll obviously have to shoulder more of the load.”

With the Lakers’ defense keying on McGrady from the start, Alston sank three 3-pointers in the first 7 minutes as the Rockets built a quick six-point lead.

Alston and McGrady started the second quarter on the sideline, but the Rockets’ reserves stretched the lead. Jackson hit a jumper, drove for a reverse layup, then found Luther Head open for a breakaway dunk to start a 15-6 spurt.

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McGrady didn’t score in the first half, going 0-for-6 from the field, but Houston still managed to build a 59-44 halftime lead.

Bryant started the third with a basket from the free-throw line, triggering a 12-0 Lakers spurt. The Rockets missed their first 12 shots out of the break, including two by McGrady.

Alston snapped Houston’s drought with a 3-pointer and added two more 3s in the final 1:44 of the quarter to keep the Rockets on top.

Notes: Former Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy was a television analyst for the game and sat one seat from team owner Les Alexander, who fired him after last season. Former center Hakeem Olajuwon also had a courtside seat near Alexander. ... Rockets rookie forward Carl Landry sat out for the fifth straight game with a bruised right knee. ... The Lakers outscored Houston 48-32 in the paint.

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