LeBron James delivered another vintage performance, pouring in 28 points to lead the Los Angeles Lakers past the Houston Rockets 98-78 and punch their ticket to a Western Conference semi-final showdown against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.

The 41-year-old legend wasn't just scoring—he stuffed the stat sheet with seven rebounds and eight assists, closing out the best-of-seven series 4-2 in emphatic fashion on the road. Houston's Amen Thompson led the Rockets with 18 points, but it wasn't nearly enough to slow down a Lakers team that had seized a 3-0 series lead and never looked back.

"A lot of our guys haven't been in this position before, especially in a close-out game on the road," James said. "It was important for me to set the tone early."

Lakers head coach JJ Redick didn't hold back his praise for the NBA's all-time leading scorer, who is now in his 23rd consecutive season. "To me, he's had the greatest career of any NBA player," Redick said. "You can argue all you want about who's the greatest of all time, but for him to answer the bell again at this level? It's baffling."

The Lakers now face a massive challenge in the Thunder, who stormed through the first round with a 4-0 sweep of the Phoenix Suns and finished atop the Western Conference. Game 1 of the semi-final series tips off Tuesday in Oklahoma City.

Meanwhile, in the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons authored a comeback for the ages. Trailing by as many as 24 points against the Orlando Magic, Detroit stormed back to win 93-79 and force a decisive Game 7. The Magic had led 62-38 early in the third quarter, appearing poised for their first playoff series win since 2010—until they missed 23 consecutive field goals. The Pistons, who had trailed 3-1 in the series, seized the moment.

"Never say die, simple as that," said Pistons star Cade Cunningham, who led all scorers with 32 points. "Detroit grit—that's what we've been talking about all year."

The winner-take-all Game 7 is set for Sunday in Detroit.