Malik Monk He was the unsuspected hero of the victory of Los angeles lakers Over the Miami Heat (120-117) in a game that was decided in overtime, which did not have the injured LeBron James and the one Jimmy Butler he retired after the first quarter with an ankle problem.
Monk scored 5 of the Lakers’ 8 points in overtime to close out a great evening of 27 points (10 of 13 shooting), 6 rebounds and 3 assists coming off the bench.
In Los Angeles also stood out Russell Westbrook (triple-double with 25 points, 12 rebounds and 14 assists) and Anthony Davis (24 points and 13 rebounds).
The Lakers (7-5) have started the season with doubts but this time they achieved a merito victory against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference (7-4).
The game was a reissue of the 2020 Finals of the “bubble” in which the Lakers achieved the ring.
On the part of the Heat, Bam Adebayo (28 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists) and Tyler Herro (27 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists) were the maximum references.
The Lakers showed great success (50% in field shots and 47% in triples) but they were heavily weighed down by 22 ball losses (8 of them from Westbrook).
FROM LESS TO MS
The two teams teamed up on a very clumsy, poor and messy start.
In just over four minutes, the Lakers lost four balls, and between the two teams they amassed a disastrous 2 of 15 shooting (3-4 with 7.48 left).
The Lakers were slow to grease their machinery, but a triple of Carmelo Anthony just off the bench and a big alley-oop from Russell Westbrook to Anthony Davis fired up his engine.
a Davis dominator (11 points and 5 rebounds) monopolize the offensive flow of the locals in the first quarter together with the surprising Avery Bradley, who chain three triples in a row for 11 points in the first quarter (28-25).
The Heat suffered their poor toe from the perimeter (2 of 11 in triples) and at the beginning of the second quarter they also found themselves with the third lack of Bam Adebayo.
Kyle Lowry tom el relevo de Jimmy Butler after his injury, but Anthony kept the Lakers ahead (37-34 with 6.34 at halftime).
The encounter until then had been very physical and heavy-paced.
Nevertheless, Tyler Herro took over to shake up the Heat’s offense with two triples in a row (47-47 with 2.35 left).
At halftime (55-57) it was a night of supporting actors: Bradley was the Lakers’ leading scorer (14 points) and Ellington He shone with three 3-pointers in a row, while Herro was the Heat’s beacon (15 points).
The Lakers went to the locker room with 12 losses.
INTERIOR DUEL
Adebayo only played seven minutes before the break due to fouls, so when he got back on track he tried to make up for lost time by punishing the Lakers zone.
Davis He responded to the challenge in a fantastic head-to-head inside (64-64 with 7.48 to go).
But it was not enough: Adebayo had become a total nightmare for the Los Angeles defense, not only scoring (14 points in the third quarter) but also distributing the game, and placed his team with an advantage before the outcome (82-86) .
The Lakers came out to bite in the fourth quarter and they turned the scoreboard taking advantage of Adebayo’s rest minutes, but as soon as the pvot returned – and Herro refined his shot – the Heat returned to carbure (93-95 with 8.21 to go).
Those of Miami caressed the ten points of advantage with the free throws of Lowry y Tucker while Davis held a Lakers with doubts (95-102 in the absence of 6.24).
However, it was Anthony who showed the Lakers the way of the pike, who returned to believe after a triple of a Malik Monk lethal in the fourth quarter (102-106 with 3.51 left).
The Staples Center stood up and Westbrook, with two home-brand baskets in the last minute, made the comeback a reality (112-110 with 27.4 seconds left).
However, a great dunk after an offensive rebound from Tucker tied the game and Westbrook could not avoid the extension with a triple on the horn.
Monk felt the adrenaline in his body and with 5 points in a row he launched a Lakers who -now they were squeezing in defense (119-114 with 1.30 to be disputed).
Adebayo promised battle until the end with a two plus one (119-117 with 21.2 seconds left) and Herro had a triple to come back after an absurd lack of serve by the Lakers, but Anthony gave some oxygen to the locals (120-117 with 6.5 seconds on the clock).
In the end, Herro failed a new decisive triple and the Lakers breathed after a triumph as hard as it was valuable.
