HOUSTON(AP) Kobe Bryant sank a 3-pointer with 27 seconds left and scored 33 points, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the undermanned Houston Rockets 105-100 on Tuesday night.

Bryant had 13 points in the fourth quarter, finally getting the better of Houston's Von Wafer, who scored a career-high 23 points in place of the injured Tracy McGrady.

Carl Landry had a season-high 21 points and eight rebounds for the Rockets, who also played without Ron Artest.

McGrady is out at least two weeks to fully recuperate from a sore left knee that's bothered him for months. Artest has missed five of the last six games with a sprained right ankle. An MRI exam also showed a bone bruise that the Rockets say will keep him out 7-10 more days.

Shane Battier swished a 3-pointer from the corner just before the shot clock ran out to put the Rockets up 100-99. Bryant answered with a deep 3-pointer from the wing on the Lakers' next trip and held his follow-through as the crowd went silent.

Rafer Alston missed a floater, got his own rebound and was fouled, but missed two free throws with 9.6 seconds left. Pau Gasol hit one of two free throws with 7.5 seconds remaining and Yao Ming missed a shot in the lane on the Rockets' last chance to tie.

Trevor Ariza added 14 points for the Lakers, who've won 10 of 11.

Yao had 19 points and 17 rebounds for the Rockets, who lost for just the second time in their last 11 home games.

The Rockets hit nine of their first 13 shots and Wafer's 3-pointer with 5:22 left in the first quarter put Houston up it 20-11. The Lakers answered with a 10-2 spurt and the Rockets led only 26-25 after the first quarter.

Wafer, the Lakers' second-round pick in the 2005 draft, grabbed a loose ball early in the second quarter and beat Bryant down the floor for a dunk. Later, Bryant spun around Wafer and missed a layup. Wafer got the ball and threw a long pass to Brent Barry for an easy layup.

Houston led 38-34 when Dikembe Mutombo made his season debut with 8:01 left in the half. The 42-year-old Mutombo had two baskets and an offensive rebound in just over four minutes of action.

The Rockets shot a season-high 62.5 percent in the first half, but the game was tied at 54. Bryant outscored Wafer only 16-14 in the first half; Bryant was 6-for-17 from the field and Wafer was 6-for-7.

Yao dominated the first nine minutes of the third quarter with 11 points and six rebounds. He earned his fourth foul with 2:53 left in the quarter and earned a rare technical when he kicked a courtside table going to the bench.

Wafer hit a deep jumper and drove the lane for another basket to keep Houston ahead. He swished a jumper from the top of the key in the final minute for an 82-78 Houston lead.

Notes: Bryant wore a bandage over his right eye after a getting cut and taking stitches for a head-to-head collision with Dwyane Wade on Sunday. ... Lakers G Sasha Vujacic sat out with back spasms. Coach Phil Jackson was also unsure of Vujacic's availability for Wednesday's game in San Antonio. ... Houston G Luther Head sat out with a sore right foot, the 11th Rocket to miss a game with an injury this season. ... The announced crowd of 18,557 was a record for a basketball game at the Toyota Center.

The Los Angeles Lakers showed in their last game that they don't need Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol to shoot well to get a win.

Big games from their leading scorers, however, couldn't hurt against a Houston Rockets team that appears to have rebounded from a recent slump.

The Lakers hope for stronger performances from their stars as they go for their 10th victory in 11 games Tuesday night in a matchup with the Rockets, winners of three straight.

Bryant was 5-for-14 from the field and Gasol went 4-for-15 on Sunday night, but the Lakers (30-6) got big contributions from Andrew Bynum and Vladimir Radmanovic to hold off Miami 108-105.

"That's good. That's a good sign, a good thing," said Gasol, one of the league's top shooters at 55.2 percent. "We might be struggling offensively or shooting from the field, but we still get it done and we still come up with ways to win ballgames."

The Western Conference-leading Lakers did so Sunday by finishing with 26 assists on 37 field goals, highlighting their depth in the process. Bynum paced Los Angeles with 24 points while Radmanovic added 18.

"We got other guys involved," said Bryant, who had seven assists after recording a season-high 13 in his previous game. "It's part of my responsibility to this team to try to do what it takes on every given night, any given night, to ensure victory for our ballclub."

Bryant will try to keep the Lakers on track against a Houston team that's won three in a row since dropping six of eight. The Rockets (24-15) held one of the NBA's highest-scoring offensive teams to its lowest point total of the season in a 96-76 win over New York on Saturday night.

"We needed that kind of victory," forward Luis Scola told the Rockets' official Web site after Houston got its first win by double figures since Dec. 22. "We need to come back and play the way we are able to play. So it's good. Now the real deal is coming. The Lakers are coming to town, which is a great opportunity for us."

The Rockets' dominant defensive effort Saturday was due in part to the return of Shane Battier, who had missed Houston's previous six games with inflammation in his surgically repaired left foot.

"It really helped having him back in the game," coach Rick Adelman said of Battier, named to the NBA All-Defensive second team last season. "He just does so many little things for us. I was really pleased with how he played."

Battier feels that the Rockets are in a good spot as they head into Tuesday's high-profile matchup - the second game of Houston's five-game homestand.

"This is the first time after a home game we've felt good about who we are and where we're going," Battier said. "Four (more) games at home now, we have a huge opportunity to make up some ground that we've lost during the last couple weeks."

To do that Tuesday, the Rockets will need a much stronger performance than they had in their first meeting with the Lakers. Los Angeles trailed by 12 after one quarter before outscoring Houston 95-54 - 39-17 in the final period - in a 111-82 rout Nov. 9 at Staples Center.

Bryant had 23 points and shot 10-for-17 in that game. He's scored more than 40 points four times - including two 53-point performances - in his last 10 games against the Rockets, averaging 34.6 points in that stretch.