It took going in overtime on Wednesday, but the Lakers managed to defeat Miami by three points, for a final score of 117 to 120. Malik Monk was the shinning star for LA, closing the game with a season-high 27 points, five of them in the very contested overtime.
Besides Monk’s 27 points (10-for-13 from the field and 4 for 7 from the three), Russell Westbrook also delivered with a triple-double, scoring 25 points, and adding 14 assists and 12 rebounds to his tally against the Heat. Anthony Davis clocked in 24 points (13 rebounds) for the night.
Much can be made from the Wednesday’s “W” against Miami, but it’s worth underlining the fact that the Lakers came out tonight with just 10 players. LeBron remains sidelined, and Rondo and Reaves were added to the injury reserves, nursing hamstring issues, for a total of six players out. But the cohesion in LA was evident, with Westbrook and AD showing excellent performance, and Monk “The Microwave” stepping up and turning on the Heat on Miami in a big way at Staples Center.
For the Heat Adebayo put in 28 points, but fouled out, while Kyle Lowry netted 18 points and had 11 assists for Miami. Unfortunately for the Eastern Conference team, Jimmy Butler went out early in the game, spraining an ankle in the first half, after scoring 7 points by that time. At post time, there was not further information given as to the severity of the injury, but speculations are already abound that he will miss the next game, which is again in LA against the Clippers. For that game the sportsbooks have the Clipper already underdog at +120. It’s also worth noting that Markieff Morris sat out the game against his former team, still suffering from whiplash after the infamous altercation with Jokic earlier this week.
The overall quality of the game was there, as well. The matchup was far from boring and the two teams traded leads in every quarter, without a clear winner or any sizable lead in any of them. So it was hardly a surprise that it came down to overtime, where the Lakers were noticeably the better team and snatched the 3-point victory.
After beating Miami, the Lakers are now at the 7th spot in the Western Conference table with a .583 record. The next game is on Friday at home against the Timberwolves, who are on a 6-game losing streak.
