The Miami HEAT defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 101-88 Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Chris Bosh led the way for the HEAT with 30 points and 11 rebounds.
1. Bosh Very Aggressive
Bosh was simply locked-in on Tuesday night. Throughout the game, he received some great looks from the perimeter thanks to the playmaking ability of his teammates. In particular, Bosh hit a corner three and a baseline jumper late in the second quarter thanks to Wade. While that got him going, the fourth quarter is where he really shined, as he poured in 10 points and grabbed three boards in the period.
Bosh also aggressively attacked the basket, which enabled him to get to the free throw line quite often. Defensively, he was stout and fought hard on the glass. In all, Bosh shot a very efficient 9-of-16 for his 30 points.
2. Whiteside Keeps it Up
In the first half against the Lakers, Whiteside was an absolute beast on the glass. He tallied a double-double (15 points, 12 rebounds) and also blocked two shots through two quarters. Early on, Whiteside did his usual damage and gave Miami second-chance opportunities with put-backs. In the second quarter, Whiteside began to score off the pick-and-roll with Wade.
One of those instances came with 5:20 to go in the second quarter when Wade drove across the wing before Whiteside set him a screen. Wade then quickly threw up a high lob once Roy Hibbert came over to him. Whiteside quickly realized the lob was coming his way, reached up and slammed it home to put Miami up 41-39.
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Whiteside continued with some nifty spin moves in the third and ended the game with 19 points, 15 boards and three blocks.
3. Tyler Johnson Shows His Defensive Prowess
No matter what scenario he’s put in, Johnson just keeps on plugging away. Against Los Angeles, Johnson made some very impressive defensive plays thanks to his constant energy. The guard had two blocks in the second quarter alone, including a great one on a Marcelo Huertas jump shot. Shortly before that, Johnson ripped the ball from Nick Young as he was on a hot streak. While his defense was great, Johnson also showed some moves on the offensive end as well.
With 9:50 left in the fourth quarter, Johnson put Huertas on skates with a sick crossover, aggressively drove inside from the left wing, absorbed contact from Brandon Bass and still got the finish to go. He hit the ensuing free throw to put the HEAT up 80-70.
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Johnson finished with nine points, two assists and two boards.
Other Takeaways:
-In his 14:45 of action, Josh Richardson looked pretty good. He showed his defensive instincts against the Lakers and closed out pretty well on a number of shots. His best defensive play came with about seven and a half minutes to play when he ripped the ball from Lou Williams and threw it up ahead to Tyler Johnson before heading out of bounds. From there, Johnson took a few dribbles and threw a perfect bounce pass to Josh McRoberts, who threw down a tomahawk jam to put Miami up 86-72.
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-Next up for the HEAT are the Utah Jazz on Thursday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
