SERIES REPORT

It has been an entertaining series so far, with talk of mud wrestling, preferential treatment from officials, and Yao Ming’s fatigue.

But after Monday’s loss to the Lakers had left Houston two games down, the Rockets couldn’t blame their season-long problem, turnovers, the elephant in their living room that took a step toward the front door in Game 2.

The Rockets had 12 turnovers, 10 fewer than in Saturday’s loss, and had to point fingers elsewhere after falling, 98-84.

Guards Cuttino Mobley and Steve Francis combined for 14 turnovers in Game 1 but totaled only three Monday. Yao was the only Rocket with more than two turnovers -- he had four -- which left other things to ponder.

Coach Jeff Van Gundy said he hadn’t seen enough from his big-name players, other than Francis, who had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

Francis said he hadn’t seen enough from the referees, who must have been mistaken, because Kobe Bryant’s birthday is Aug. 23, not Monday, as Francis asserted in discussing what he perceived to be favorable calls for the Laker star.

It got worse from there. Bryant seared Mobley for 36 points, and Yao disappeared in the second half until the final four minutes, when it was too late. But Mobley said the Rockets weren’t panicking.

“We stuck with them for a while, it was just toward the end of the third quarter I think we cracked as a team and they capitalized,” Mobley said. “To tell you the truth, we know what we did wrong. It’s not really back to the drawing board. We meet them in Houston on Friday, and we’ll be prepared.”

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Questions about Yao’s fatigue won’t go away.

He said he felt exhausted last week and was asked about it again Monday after he’d faded down the stretch.

He had a team-high 14 points in the first half but only one after halftime until he made a 13-foot jump shot with 4:31 left in the fourth quarter. The Rockets trailed by 17 at the time.

Yao made eight of 19 shots and had 21 points, six of them after the outcome had already been determined.

“I think everybody is tired at this point in the season,” Yao said. “You can’t say, ‘I’m coming off a back-to-back.’ Everybody’s got the same schedule, so everybody is the same.

“Shaquille O’Neal had a lot of fouls at one point, and I should have been able to get closer to the basket. It was my problem. I didn’t take advantage of the opportunities I had.”

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Francis became the first Rocket with a playoff triple-double since Hakeem Olajuwon in April 1990, also against the Lakers.

Forward Clarence Weatherspoon, used primarily for defense, aggravated a calf injury near the end of the second quarter but may play Friday night.