Houston steps up to test against Lakers

That, as much as anything, illustrates how the Rockets have won 22 consecutive games, vaulting them from 10th in the Western Conference to a confident first by a full game over the defensively vulnerable Lakers.

"It was a real test for us," McGrady said, "and we came out and took care of it."

Their going-away, 104-92 triumph at the jubilant Toyota Center might have been the most unlikely in a winning streak that has become the second-longest in NBA history.

The Rockets had put together fine defensive efforts before, having held opponents to 88.1 points per game during their streak.

And until they shot poorly against Atlanta and Charlotte in wins 20 and 21 -- overcoming a 13-point deficit against the Bobcats on Friday -- they were shooting about 46% as a team and were getting solid contributions from their bench.

But not until Sunday had their resolve been so strenuously tested.

McGrady, averaging 22.2 points this season and a shade under 30 points in his previous five games, missed six shots in the first half and his first nine overall before he made a short jumper with 2:54 left in the third quarter.

"You have nights like this in this game," he said, shrugging.

While he sputtered, guard Bobby Jackson contributed 19 of the reserves' 35 points and point guard Rafer Alston reached career-bests with eight three-point shots and 31 points.

"We stayed together as a team," Shane Battier said. "There wasn't a time when we wavered from what has been successful."

Battier was a key part of that success by playing tireless and tenacious defense against Kobe Bryant, who scored 24 points. The Rockets' team defense flagged in the third quarter but revived strongly in the fourth, when Bryant went two for 10 and the Lakers as a team made only eight of 21 field goal attempts.

"That's the makeup of our team. You never know who's going to come forward," said McGrady, who finished with 11 points and six assists.

"We knew this was going to be a tough game. Kobe Bryant is a fierce competitor and I knew he wanted to break this streak, especially on our court."

Bryant, who tried to take over the Lakers' limited offense in the fourth quarter and played all but the last 56 seconds of the game, credited the Rockets' bench for creating a spark that the Lakers couldn't match.