Miami is the first to attack and was in the lead by 13 points at the end of the first quarter (36-23). The Heat then continued to lead before the break, still having a good gap (53-39, 20th). But, thanks to two three-point shots from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Marc Gasol, Los Angeles had made up part of its delay (59-52), when returning to the locker room.
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James intercepts but Caruso does not convert
In the second half, Miami led most of the way, but mostly with the Lakers on their heels. Thus, the gap of 10 points (76-66, 33rd) quickly disappeared. In the last quarter, the Florida franchise again tried to get away (89-79, 39th), but LA came back to score again (92-89, 45th). The Heat also suffered in the last 12 minutes, managing to register only 15 points.
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Miami finally kept its meager lead, thanks to two successful sets of free throws by Jimmy Butler. Los Angeles had a match point, but missed it: after a final shot from Wesley Matthews, the Lakers managed to get the ball back, thanks to an interception from LeBron James. But Alex Caruso missed his attempt by three points.
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The Miami Heat, which had experienced three defeats in a row, before finding a smile against Sacramento (118-110), therefore offers itself a second consecutive victory. He is 11th in the Eastern Conference. The Los Angeles Lakers, they suffered a second loss in a row, after that against Brooklyn (109-98) and did not approach Utah, the leader of the Western Conference. The Californians remain second, two wins away from the Jazz.
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Nunn and Butler wear Miami
Kendrick Nunn (27 points) and Jimmy Butler (24 pts) were the main architects of Miami’s success. Bam Adebayo (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Duncan Robinson (11 points, 10 rebounds) also contributed to the victory. For the Lakers, Kyle Kuzma scored 23 points, supported by LeBron James, not far from a triple-double (19 pts, nine rebounds, nine assists) and Montrezl Harrell (18 points, 10 rebounds).
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Both teams will return to the scene on Monday, Miami in Oklahoma City and Los Angeles at home against Washington.
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