The Los Angeles Lakers used their size advantage to bully the Houston Rockets in a 110-100 victory which has the Californians just one game away from the Western Conference finals.
The Lakers out-rebounded Houston 52-26 and turned the offensive rebounds into 17 points, with Los Angeles' dominance in the paint somewhat marred by their failure to maintain defensive pressure late in the fourth quarter.
Big man Anthony Davis did the Lakers' heavy lifting with 29 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while LeBron James backed him up with 16 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists.
Rajon Rondo had another strong performance as he returns from a broken hand, coming off the bench to score 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists including one off the glass for James to score and close out the game.
Russell Westbrook led the Rockets with 25 points and James Harden had 21, though his record of 2-from-11 from the field will trouble Houston's coaches.
A Lakers win in Game 5 on Saturday would ensure they progress to the conference finals for the first time since 2010, the last year they also won a championship, where they will meet either the Los Angeles Clippers or the Denver Nuggets.
