Rockets at Lakers final score: Dwight Howard leads Houston to 134-108 victory in his Los Angeles return

For the first time since leaving the Los Angeles Lakers in favor of the Houston Rockets as a free agent in the summer, center Dwight Howard returned to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California Wednesday night. Howard scored 20 points, leading the Rockets to a 134-108 victory.

Howard was nine-of-14 from the field, grabbed 13 rebounds, blocked three shots and had two steals in just 28 minutes as the Rockets raced out to an early double digit lead and never looked back.

James Harden had a huge night, scoring a game-high 29 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field, five-of-seven shooting from beyond the arc and four-of-six shooting from the free throw line to go with 11 assists, six rebounds and four steals.

Chandler Parsons added 18 points and five rebounds.

The Lakers were led by Wesley Johnson, who had 24 points and seven rebounds, and Kendall Marshall, who finished with 20 points and 16 assists. Jodie Meeks poured in 19 points while Ryan Kelly added 13.

The win improves the Rockets to 37-17 and the Lakers are now 18-36.

Howard was showered with boos as he was introduced and they continued throughout the night. Although one Lakers fan got the best of him on this high-five attempt (watch the video here), it was Howard who clearly got the best of his former team, even joining in on the “Howard sucks” chant.