Doncic’s 60 boost Lakers to 134-126 decision, as Heat skid reaches three
· Yahoo Sports
MIAMI – To review the play-in process . . .
No, it is not trending in the right direction for the Miami Heat over the past week since the seven-game winning streak, nor did it trend in the right direction in Thursday night’s 134-126 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at Kaseya Center.
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So make it three straight losses, this time after blowing an early 15-point lead against an exhausted Lakers team playing on the second night of a back-to-back set.
Without answers for NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic, who closed with 60 points, the Heat fell back to No. 8 in the Eastern Conference, on a night they could have moved up to No. 6 and out of the play-in bracket.
Doncic’s total was the most scored against the Heat in the franchise’s 38 seasons, surpassing the 58 of James Harden while he was with the Houston Rockets.
For the Heat, the only consistent counter to the scoring of Doncic were the 28 points of center Bam Adebayo, who was back after missing Tuesday night’s blowout road loss to the Charlotte Hornets with a calf issue.
The Heat also got 21 points from Tyler Herro and 20 from Norman Powell, and a limited bench contribution otherwise, with Jaime Jaquez Jr. sidelined with hip tightness, as the Heat also continued in the injury absence of Andrew Wiggins (toe).
The Lakers, meanwhile, also got 19 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists from LeBron James.
Five Degrees of Heat from Thursday night’s game:
1. Game flow: The Heat led 42-29 after the first period and 65-59 at halftime, after going up 15 in the second period. The Lakers then turned the game in the third period, taking a 97-88 lead into the fourth.
The Heat pushed back within four early in the fourth, before Doncic returned to move the Lakers’ lead to eight.
Later, a Herro 3-pointer with 5:30 to play got the Heat within 111-105, with a Herro 3-point play drawing the Heat within 121-117 with 2:18 to play, only to see it countered by a Doncic 3-pointer.
2. Something different: The Heat opened with a lineup with a quintet that had not played a single minute together prior to the opening tip, opening with Adebayo, Herro, Pelle Larsson, Davion Mitchell and Simone Fontecchio.
That alignment had Powell as a reserve for the second consecutive game, the only times he has played as reserve with the Heat.
It also had Kel’el Ware back on the bench after he started in place of sidelined Adebayo in Tuesday night’s loss in Charlotte.
It was the Heat’s 25th lineup in their 70 games.
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3. Record-tying: With the appearance, James tied Robert Parish at 1,611 for most regular-season games played in NBA history.
“The competitive stamina that he has and his ability to put so much focus and intent into his day, that’s how you last,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “That’s how you improve. That’s how you stay healthy and are available to play an amount of games.”
Redick then added a Pat Riley-ism, “I think his thing is, whatever the quote is, make sure you make the main thing the main thing. And he’s made basketball the main thing for a long time.”
4. The Luka show: Named Western Conference Player of the Week on Monday when Adebayo was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week, Doncic continued his recent run of dominance.
This time, it was 12 points in the first quarter, up to 21 at halftime and then a takeover in the third quarter with his 3-point shooting, as the Lakers totally turned it around.
During that third period, Doncic broke the previous Lakers’ single-season record for 3-pointers, which had been 228 by D’Angelo Russell in 2023-24.
Doncic entered leading the NBA at 33 points per game, having scored 40 points a night earlier in the Lakers’ victory in Houston, this time with 40 going into the fourth.
He closed 18 of 30 from the field, 9 of 17 on 3-pointers and 15 of 19 from the line, also with seven rebounds and five steals.
5. Counter-offensive: Back from his calf issue, Adebayo did his best to try to keep the Heat afloat, with 23 points through three quarters, at 3 of 6 to that stage.
He closed 9 of 19 from the field, adding 10 rebounds.
The best of the Heat’s play until the closing stages arguably came in the middle, with Kel’el Ware adding 14 points and nine rebounds, including fourth-quarter minutes alongside Adebayo.