The Miami Heat (5-3) defeated the Los Angeles Lakers (1-6) 101-88 on Tuesday.
The Heat came into this matchup as double-digit favorites and they showed why here. Miami out-rebounded the Lakers 47-36 in the victory and thoroughly dominated them down low. The Lakers committed 17 turnovers in the loss and that's too many when you only draw 10 of your own.
The Lakers made 11-of-22 three-pointers in this game, but that simply wasn’t enough to get it done. With Kobe Bryant out of the lineup for rest, there was simply not enough punch in the starting five. In fact, the starting lineup amassed just 39 points in the loss with Metta World Peace leading the bunch with 14 points, No respect to World Peace, but if he's leading your starters in scoring, you're probably going to lose. They did get 17 points off the bench from Nick Young though, who hits five three-pointers on nine attempts. The Lakers will look to play better in their next game on Wednesday in the second half of a back-to-back against the Orlando Magic.
The Heat got some great performances from Chris Bosh and Hassan Whitesside en route to an easy victory. Bosh tallied 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Whiteside totaled 19 points and 15 rebounds in the win. Guard Goran Dragic continued to struggle though, as he posted just four points and three assists in the victory. There is simply not enough ball to go around for Dragic right now and it remains to be seen if he can be successful in this system. In any case, a win is a win. The Heat will take on the Utah Jazz on Thursday in their next game.
