HOUSTON — Kobe Bryant took the inbounds pass, dribbled away from Ron Artest and swished a shot from 33 feet to end the third quarter.

He struck a frozen pose after another signature moment, sending a clear message to the hostile crowd that he and the Los Angeles Lakers are in control of their Western Conference semifinal.

Bryant scored 33 points in the Lakers' 108-94 victory in Game 3 last night that gave them a 2-1 series lead.

"I'm just doing what I do best," Bryant said, "just challenging other teams to try to do something with me. We, as a team, play off of that. It's on me to be aggressive."

Lamar Odom had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and reserve point guard Jordan Farmar had 12 points and seven assists in place of the suspended Derek Fisher, who was ejected from Game 2 for a hard hit on Luis Scola when he set a pick.

Artest, who scored 25 points, was ejected for a flagrant foul on Pau Gasol in the final minute, the only carryover of the rough play that turned testy in Game 2. Artest was ejected from Game 2 for a verbal altercation with Bryant following Bryant's elbow to Artest's chest.

Artest was OK with the call in yesterday's game, adding that two of the referees explained why they called it that way.

"Just the end of the game, keeping things in control," Artest said.

Yao Ming added 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets but he was bothered by a sore left foot in the final minutes and was limping as he left the court.

Yao said he would test the injury by running today and vowed he will play in Game 4 tomorrow.

"I really want to play," he said. "When tomorrow's test shows everything's all right, I'm going to play."

Yao's health is only one of Houston's worries after the Lakers snapped the Rockets' nine-game home winning streak. Houston committed 17 turnovers that generated 20 points from the Lakers and went 6 for 25 from the field in the third quarter, when Los Angeles built a 74-62 lead.

L.A. LAKERS 30 20 24 34—108

HOUSTON 28 20 14 32— 94

L.A. LAKERS-Ariza 4-7 2-4 13, Odom 7-11 0-0 16, Gasol 4-11 5-7 13, Farmar 3-7 6-8 12, Bryant 11-28 7-8 33, Walton 2-6 1-2 6, Bynum 2-2 0-0 4, Brown 2-2 4-4 8, Vujacic 1-6 0-0 3, Powell 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 36-82 25-33 108.

HOUSTON-Battier 2-5 0-0 6, Scola 5-11 0-2 10, Yao 6-14 7-9 19, Brooks 3-8 0-0 7, Artest 10-23 3-4 25, Lowry 3-6 2-3 8, Hayes 0-0 0-0 0, Landry 4-7 2-2 10, Wafer 2-10 4-5 9. Totals 35-84 18-25 94.

3-Point Goals—L.A. Lakers 11-20 (Bryant 4-6, Ariza 3-4, Odom 2-2, Walton 1-2, Vujacic 1-3, Farmar 0-3), Houston 6-19 (Battier 2-5, Artest 2-8, Brooks 1-2, Wafer 1-4). Rebounds—L.A. Lakers 50 (Odom 13), Houston 60 (Yao 14). Assists—L.A. Lakers 17 (Farmar 7), Houston 16 (Battier 7). Total Fouls—L.A. Lakers 22, Houston 22. Technicals—Walton. Flagrant Fouls—Artest. A—18,495.

MAGIC 117, CELTICS 96

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Orlando Magic seem to be at their best when they're shorthanded.

Dwight Howard had 17 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks to lift Orlando over Boston last night and a 2-1 series lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal.

"Just the whole team stepped up the defensive intensity," said Howard, the NBA's defensive player of the year. "It starts with me. I have to do that every night if we want to be successful."

Rashard Lewis had 28 points, and Hedo Turkoglu scored 24 for Orlando, which played without starting point guard Rafer Alston. He was suspended by the NBA for slapping Eddie House in the back of the head in Game 2.

Paul Pierce broke out of his series slump to score 27 points, and Rajon Rondo added 15 for the defending champion Celtics, who trimmed a 20-point deficit to seven before the Magic regained control.

"You give them their inside game and their outside game, then you don't have a chance," Pierce said.

Game 4 is tomorrow in Orlando, and Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said he won't spend time enjoying his team's latest win.

"This is not the time of year to celebrate a win in the playoffs, especially against a team like Boston," Van Gundy said. "It's basically like being at halftime with a one-point lead."

It was the second time this postseason the Magic won with a starter suspended.

BOSTON 18 23 28 27— 96

ORLANDO 22 31 25 39—117

BOSTON-Pierce 6-15 14-14 27, Davis 2-6 3-4 7, Perkins 5-8 0-0 10, R.Allen 3-13 2-2 8, Rondo 7-17 1-3 15, Scalabrine 2-5 0-0 5, Marbury 1-4 0-0 2, House 6-7 0-0 15, Moore 1-1 0-0 2, Pruitt 0-1 0-0 0, T.Allen 1-1 1-1 3, Walker 0-1 2-2 2. Totals 34-79 23-26 96.

ORLANDO-Turkoglu 8-12 6-7 24, Lewis 9-17 7-8 28, Howard 7-8 3-6 17, Redick 1-5 2-2 5, Johnson 5-7 2-2 13, Lee 3-4 4-4 11, Battie 0-2 0-0 0, Pietrus 2-6 3-4 7, Gortat 2-2 3-3 7, Lue 2-2 0-0 5, Foyle 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 39-66 30-36 117.

3-Point Goals—Boston 5-18 (House 3-4, Pierce 1-3, Scalabrine 1-3, Marbury 0-1, Rondo 0-1, Perkins 0-1, R.Allen 0-5), Orlando 9-18 (Lewis 3-7, Turkoglu 2-3, Johnson 1-1, Lee 1-1, Lue 1-1, Redick 1-2, Pietrus 0-3). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Boston 37 (Perkins 7), Orlando 44 (Howard 14). Assists—Boston 24 (Rondo, Pierce 6), Orlando 16 (Turkoglu 4). Total Fouls—Boston 29, Orlando 25. Technicals—House, Turkoglu. Flagrant Fouls—Perkins. A—17,461 (17,461).