The Los Angeles Lakers heated up in the second half and defeated the Miami Heat to end their home winning streak.
In a battle between the best road and home teams, the Heat got off to an early 5-0 start. However, Danny Green‘s 3-and-D was on display after he made his first three-pointer and blocked Duncan Robinson in transition to energize them.
As both teams went back and forth, LeBron James headed back to the locker room after picking up two fouls and four turnovers. Fortunately, Lakers took a 30-29 lead after the first quarter now behind Anthony Davis‘ nine points.
With James returning for the second quarter, the Heat went on a 8-2 run to establish the biggest lead of the game. Despite two timeouts by head coach Frank Vogel, James and the Lakers continued to turn the basketball over (nine).
Fortunately for Los Angeles, they started to take care of the basketball and went on a 6-0 run of their own to force a Miami timeout. Unfortunately, the Lakers could not maintain their defense as the Heat re-established their 10-point lead.
While the Lakers tried to close the distance, they found themselves down 59-51 after the second quarter.
To begin the second half, James committed his eighth turnover but the Lakers were able to overcome it by cutting into the deficit. Highlighted by JaVale McGee‘s three blocks in three minutes, James’ dunk and three later tied the game.
After Davis’ back-to-back three-pointers, the Lakers took a 74-67 lead midway through the third quarter. Despite a 20-point swing, the Heat cut the team’s lead to three points.
With an opportunity to extend the lead, James made his fourth three-pointer and the Lakers took control. Unfortunately, the Heat made one final run, but Jimmy Butler missed a three to send the game into overtime.
