3 years ago
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LOS ANGELES — It’s each Russell Westbrook has ever wanted: to beryllium loved successful his hometown.
The Brodie was feeling the emotion Wednesday night, arsenic helium traded large shots with the Miami Heat successful the midst of a triple-double performance, his 3rd of the season. A sellout Staples Center assemblage stood astatine attraction for the last 3 minutes of regularisation and past for overtime, not adjacent taking a interruption for timeouts.
Westbrook didn’t deed the game-winning basket, but helium did a batch of bully during the Lakers’ 120-117 overtime triumph implicit the Miami Heat, a squad they bushed successful the NBA Finals a twelvemonth ago, and who galore judge is simply a contender again. It was not lone the Lakers’ champion triumph without LeBron James – it was their champion triumph truthful far, period.
This clip it was Westbrook astatine the forefront, with 25 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds. While his 10-for-22 shooting and 8 turnovers near much than capable country for improvement, helium was capable to soak up immoderate adoration for a crippled that helium enactment his stamp on. Anthony Davis added 24 points and 13 rebounds.
It helped the Lakers (7-5) that Malik Monk, who had deed a acold spot of late, started punching supra his value connected a nighttime erstwhile the short-handed Lakers were besides without Rajon Rondo oregon Austin Reaves, leaving them with 9 viable players. Monk helped marque up for the nonaccomplishment of both, navigating pick-and-rolls successful the archetypal half, past uncovering his scope successful the 2nd and finishing with a team-best 27 points. A one-legged, changeable clock-beating jumper successful overtime was the apical item for the 23-year-old, who has a past of playing good against Miami.
As a team, the Lakers changeable the lights retired from 3-point range. Avery Bradley deed 5 3-points to gait their 18-for-38 effort from down the arc.
The Lakers would not person been capable to propulsion it disconnected without carnal antiaircraft rebounding: Davis and Carmelo Anthony helped power the solid successful the overtime, with Anthony coming down with the decisive past committee arsenic a Tyler Herro jumper successful the last 10 seconds missed wide.
Herro represented the champion anticipation for Miami aft All-Star Jimmy Butler made an aboriginal exit aft 1 4th with a sprained ankle. Herro scored 27 points, including a fig of large shots successful regulation, but helium could not nail wide-open looks successful OT arsenic Miami fell to 7-4. Bam Adebayo had a team-best 28 points, but helium needed 20 shots and fouled retired successful overtime.
The crippled was astir implicit astatine the regularisation buzzer. Westbrook had been hot, making his 2 erstwhile shots, including 1 to enactment the Lakers up by 2 with 27 seconds left. After P.J. Tucker made the tying putback dunk, Westbrook, isolated connected the wing, fto the timepiece tick down earlier firing an off-target jumper implicit Tucker. Davis astir flushed the rebound himself, but alternatively the Lakers headed to overtime for the 2nd crippled successful a row.
The Lakers struggled to support Miami’s cutting actions – the aforesaid benignant of knife-like attacks that gave them truthful galore problems 13 months agone erstwhile the teams met successful the Finals. With well-timed cuts, Miami was capable to rack up 50 points successful the paint, scoring layups conscionable a gait oregon 2 up of Lakers defenders who were caught off-guard.
That, positive a whopping 35-16 differential successful free-throw attempts successful the Heat’s favor, led to a fig of Miami runs, including a 12-0 rally successful the mediate of the 4th quarter.
The commencement was a reminder of the defense-centric quality of the 2 coaching staffs: The Lakers and the Heat combined to statesman 0 for 13 from the field. It wasn’t until astir 4 minutes successful that Bradley yet took the lid disconnected the handbasket with a layup.
Shots fell aft that, but they seldom came freely. The Lakers started to get rolling erstwhile Davis muscled his mode into the overgarment against a helpless Dewayne Dedmon. The Heat responded with double-teams to swarm him successful the post, adding to the lofty turnover total, but besides opening up large shooting nights from Bradley and Ellington from the perimeter.
Initially, Miami looked challenged connected depth, particularly aft Butler went retired and Dedmon coiled up successful foul trouble. At 1 constituent successful the 2nd quarter, Erik Spoelstra turned to 41-year-old Udonis Haslem – the past remaining erstwhile teammate of James during his 2010-2014 stint successful Miami – to instrumentality minutes other Dwight Howard. He nailed a baseline jumper during his five-minute stint, but his property showed erstwhile Westbrook blocked his changeable from behind.
Howard responded to the Heat’s platoon of large men with physicality – excessively overmuch of it, successful fact. Howard fouled retired successful conscionable 11 minutes of action, the fastest a Laker has fouled retired since Andrew Bynum successful 2009. That enactment the Lakers successful a spread connected the foul front: Miami reached the bonus with 8 minutes remaining successful the 4th quarter.
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