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Series tied 3-3

GETTING THE POINT?

A look at how Rockets point guard Aaron Brooks has fared in the three wins compared to the three losses against the Lakers:

WINS

SCORING AVG.: 26.3

Field-goal pct.: 57.4 (27-of-47)

3-point field goal pct.: 44.4 (8-of-18)

Assists: 10

Turnovers: 10

LOSSES

SCORING AVG.: 11.3

Field-goal pct.: 35.3 (12-of-34)

3-point field goal pct.: 28.6 (4-of-14)

Assists: 5

Turnovers: 7

Not long ago - Feb. 18 to be exact - Rockets guard Aaron Brooks had everything he could possibly want.

He was 24, in his second year in the NBA and on a comfortable pace to grow and develop behind veteran starting point guard Rafer Alston in the Rockets organization.

The next day, the Rockets sent Alston to the Orlando Magic at the trade deadline. Ready or not, Brooks was anointed the starting point guard.

"I was content with my role," Brooks said Friday as the Rockets prepared for the decisive Game 7 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday. "I was happy being a spark plug off the bench. You have a good game or a bad one, and (Rafer) would come in and clean it up. There's less pressure on you.

"I was just going out and having fun."

Three months later, Brooks has emerged as a savior for the injury-ravaged Rockets . Without stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, Brooks is averaging 17.1 points in the playoffs and has become known as much for scoring and creating matchup problems as his wardrobe.

Yes, he is averaging 26.3 points and shooting 57.4 percent in three victories against the Lakers.

And, yes, he's the guy who showed up for a postgame news conference wearing a bright red Rockets blazer and matching bow tie.

"Not one of the memories I'm going to keep," Brooks said with a grin.

At the time of the Alston deal, Rockets coach Rick Adelman told Brooks, "You're going to be the guy we're leaning on."

How did the 6-0 Brooks respond?

He averaged 11.2 points and three assists during the regular season. Since the trade, the Rockets are 27-13.

"He has certainly stepped up," Adelman said. "He's everything we hoped he'd be."

Brooks has experienced his share of playoff memories along the way.

In the opener against Portland, Brooks made five of eight 3-pointers and finished with 27 points. With Yao out with a broken foot, Brooks scored a career-high 34 points - his Kodak moment an inbounds alley-oop pass from Ron Artest near midcourt that Brooks caught and banked off the glass to end the third quarter - in a Game 4 blowout of the Lakers.

With the Rockets facing elimination Friday night, Brooks had 26 points, including a 3-pointer at the buzzer that gave the Rockets a 16-point halftime lead.

Rockets forward Shane Battier said it was a smooth transition when Brooks became the starting point guard.

"Aaron is talented," Battier said. "He knows it but sometimes forgets it. There are times we have to tell him, ?Hey, you're our guy. We don't want anybody else. We just want you. We think you're the guy to lead us.'?"

The next step for Brooks: consistency in his overall play. The speedy guard has shown flashes during the Lakers series, beating defenders off the dribble and creating the options to score or pass to the open man. His 41 assists to 26 turnovers has shown he's not afraid to take chances.

"He's learning on the go," Artest said.

But there has been a link between the Rockets' play and when Brooks has a poor night scoring. In the three losses, Brooks averaged 11.3 points and shot 35.3 percent.

"I don't think it's the amount of points I score, but the efficiency," Brooks said. "If I'm aggressive and don't have that many turnovers, we tend to win the game."

Not expecting to be in this position three months ago, Brooks said he appreciates every moment.

And he still gets nervous.

"I don't think I'll ever get comfortable in this league," he said. "There's always someone that is working trying to take your spot.

"That's how I play. I cherish every moment I have out there."

joseph.duarte@chron.com