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LOS ANGELES, Calif. - After James Harden lit up the Los Angeles Lakers for the first three quarters, he returned in the final minutes to keep the Houston Rockets focused on their finish.Kobe Bryant used to do that job for the Lakers, and they might find out Monday whether hell do it again this year.Harden had 37 points and eight rebounds, and the Rockets rolled to a 99-87 victory without Dwight Howard on Sunday night, sending Los Angeles to its eighth straight defeat.Harden hit four 3-pointers, and the NBAs leading scorer added five assists in the Rockets third victory in four games. He thought he had earned an early night off, but didnt mind returning to the court after Los Angeles trimmed a 25-point lead to 11 in the final minutes.Its my job to be not only a scorer, but a facilitator, said Harden, who scored at least 33 points in his fourth straight game. Make sure everybody is happy, getting good shots. Weve got to do a better job closing out games. Its definitely getting there. Were more than capable of being the best defensive team in the league, but weve got to focus on it every game.Josh Smith and Jason Terry had 11 points apiece as Houston cruised to its fourth straight road victory over the Lakers even without Howard, who sat out after injuring his right ankle two days ago.I thought in the first half, we ran a lot more, Houston coach Kevin McHale said. I think our focus kind of waned later on in the game.Carlos Boozer scored 18 points for the Lakers, who are on their longest losing streak in nearly 10 years.The Lakers werent terribly competitive until the fourth quarter of their latest game without Bryant, who could be out for the season after tearing his right rotator cuff last week.Los Angeles, which committed 21 turnovers and went 1 for 13 on 3-pointers, hadnt lost eight straight games since March 2005. The Lakers missed the playoffs that season for the only time in Bryants career before last year.The effort, that hasnt been an issue, coach Byron Scott said. The turnovers, that has been an issue. When were turning the ball over at that high of a rate, were not giving ourselves a chance.The Lakers could find out Monday whether Bryant needs season-ending surgery. Scott hasnt given up optimism for an eventual return by the third-leading scorer in NBA history.I think we all hold out hope that it goes well, (and) they say he doesnt need surgery or anything like that, Scott said. Maybe rehabilitation for a few weeks or a month or whatever the case may be. But thats the positive part of me hoping that happens.TIP-INSRockets: Joey Dorsey started in Howards place, scoring four points. ... McHale is uncertain when Howard will return to the lineup. At least his absence spared him the relentless booing hell likely face from Lakers fans for the rest of his career after he spurned the club in free agency in 2013. ... Harden is a Los Angeles native who attended Artesia High School.Lakers: Scott showed up slightly late to Staples Center after forgetting that the Lakers Sunday game time is an hour earlier than every other night. The 53-year-old coach claimed he had a senior moment. ... Rookie big man Tarik Black, who was waived by Houston last month, had three points and five rebounds for the Lakers. He had missed the last two games with a sprained right ankle.SWAGGY SADNick Young played just nine minutes for the Lakers and went scoreless, getting benched for the entire second half. The entertaining shooting guard gave an unsatisfactory answer to a halftime question about a defensive assignment from Scott, who said Young looked to me like he didnt want to be here. Young hadnt played in a game without scoring since he joined his hometown team before last season. Young left Staples Center without speaking to reporters.POINT GUARD POPRookie Jordan Clarkson had eight points on 2-for-10 shooting and five turnovers in his second start for the Lakers, while Jeremy Lin had 14 points and six assists off the bench after being a healthy scratch in Fridays loss at San Antonio. Scott intends to keep his current starting lineup together for the next 15 games or so.UP NEXT:Rockets: Host Dallas on Wednesday.Lakers: Host Washington on Tuesday. Yeezy Shoes Clearance .com) - The Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics both entered Wednesday nights game riding lengthy losing streaks. Yeezy Wholesale Authentic . -- Canada played to expectation up until halftime. http://www.cheapyeezy.net/. - The New York Rangers have momentum, a unified locker room and Henrik Lundqvist. Cheap Real Yeezy Shoes . It has been eleven years, eight months, and 261 days since I played my last CFL game. Cheap Yeezy .C. -- Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith has been ruled out for Sundays game against the Atlanta Falcons.The Calgary Flames look to avoid a fourth consecutive defeat tonight when they battle the Tampa Bay Lightning in Calgary. The team has been outscored 8-1 over its current slump. The Flames began a five-game homestand with a shootout win over St. Louis on Dec. 23, but were shut out by Edmonton and Vancouver in their first two games after the Christmas break. Rookie Sean Monahan finally got the Flames a goal in Tuesdays meeting with the Philadelphia Flyers, but it was the only one in a 4-1 setback. "Were building a new culture and we have some young players who we want to give some ice time and learn what to do out there," said Calgary head coach Bob Hartley. "But right now is a tough time because were not scoring goals." Reto Berra gave up three goals on 20 shots for a Flames club that has been shut out in three of its last eight games. While it might not help the offense, defenseman Dennis Wideman is on track to return tonight for the Flames. He has been sidelined since breaking his hand on Nov. 27, missing 16 straight games. Forward Lee Stempniak did miss practice on Thursday, however, due to illness. Tampa Bay meanwhile, look for a second victory in as many games on their current road trip Friday night against a Flames club that continues to struggle on offense. The Lightning began a four-game swing through Western Canada with a 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday. It was Tampa Bays fourth straight win on the road and gave the club a 6-1-1 record over its last eight games overall.dddddddddddd Valtteri Filppula, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov all scored in the third period for the Lightning, who also visit Edmonton and Winnipeg on the trip, and Ben Bishop made 28 saves. Filppula, who also had an assist, and Johnson scored 20 seconds apart to give the Bolts the lead and Kucherov responded with a power-play tally with three seconds left in the frame just over four minutes after the Canucks tied it. Alex Killorn had a goal in the third period after assisting on Filppulas goal. "We played a solid road game," Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper said. "We fell behind, found a way to get the lead and held on to it." Filppula has notched 32 points in 40 games this season, including five goals and seven assists over his last eight games, while Johnson has three goals and an assist in his past four. Bishop improved to 21-5-3 with a 1.89 goals against average and .935 save percentage in 30 starts this season. He is 0-2-0 with a 3.55 GAA in two previous meetings with the Flames. The Lightning have won seven of their past 10 versus the Flames and three of the previous four played in Calgary. The Flames will give former Lightning goaltender Karri Ramo the start tonight. He was a sixth-round pick by the Bolts in 2004 and appeared in 48 games with the club through 2008-09 before going to the Kontinental Hockey League. He has never before faced Tampa Bay. ' ' '