On the brink of winning their first game of their first-round playoff series, the Rockets choked. Houston shockingly gave up a six-point lead in the final 30 seconds of regulation, allowing LeBron James and the Lakers to force overtime. Los Angeles then closed out Game 3 with a 112–108 comeback win in Houston on Friday night to deal the Rockets one of their worst postseason losses in franchise history. The loss was mathematically hard to stomach: NBA teams were 1713–1 when leading by six points or more in the last 30 seconds of regulation in the playoffs in the last 29 years, per NBA stats analyst Keerthika Uthayakumar . Now, teams are 1713-2, with Houston joining the 2024 Knicks. After the Rockets’ stunning meltdown, coach Ime Udoka had some harsh words for his team. Udoka didn’t call out Reed Sheppard—who committed the costly turnover that helped the Laker tie the game—by name, but he did appear to criticize Houston’s young core.…