Even without the ailing superstars, the Los Angeles Lakers celebrated their fourth win in the past five games. At 112:109 Dennis Schröder becomes the match winner, in the dramatic final phase he keeps his nerve.
Los Angeles Lakers (17-21) – Miami Heat (20-19) 112:109 (BOXSCORE)
The German showed his best performance of the season so far in a game in which the Lakers had to do without the sick LeBron James (“normal cold” – coach Darvin Ham) and the injured Anthony Davis. Schröder finished the game with a personal best of the season of 32 points – 14 of them in the fourth quarter – sinking 8/15 from the field, 4/7 trebles and 12/14 free throws. He was also there in the crunch time, and he also convinced with 4 steals.
Russell Westbrook also showed a good performance from the bench, the point guard flirted with a triple-double (21 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds), but also lost 7 turnovers. Thomas Bryant kept putting pressure under the basket and scored 21 points (9/11 FG) and 9 rebounds. Bam Adebayo (30, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks) and Jimmy Butler (27, 4 assists, 3 steals) were the best players on the Heat, but otherwise there was not enough from the teammates. Especially Tyler Herro had a bad evening (9, 4/14 FG).
Due to the absence of the two superstars, LA went into the game with a somewhat unusual starting five consisting of Schröder, Patrick Beverley, Austin Reaves, Juan Toscano-Anderson and Thomas Bryant. Nevertheless, the home side kept up well from the start, and after Westbrook came on, they even had a slight advantage.
The guard brought a lot of energy, scored himself or put the other players in the limelight. A buzzer beater from Wenyen Gabriel put LA at 32:23 after the first quarter. The Heat were also looking for a long-distance rhythm in the second half (4/16 trebles in the first half), the Lakers repeatedly presented different defensive strategies. Nevertheless, Kyle Lowry (11) and Adebayo brought the guests back within striking distance, and Miami now caused more damage in the zone. 52:48 Lakers at the break.
After the change of sides, Butler slowly took over the heat offense. Miami took the lead for the first time since the first quarter, but it didn’t last long. In this section alone there were eight lead changes, and the Lakers went into the final section 79:78.
Lakers win thanks to Schröder – drama in the final minutes
Schröder was convincing for the Lakers in this phase, also defensively. In the middle of the last round, however, there was a moment of shock for the German. During a drive to the basket, he twisted his ankle badly on his opponent’s foot. But Schröder stayed in the game – and immediately sank a three in the next attack. His ankle didn’t seem to put any weight on him.
Shortly thereafter, Bryant confirmed his strong game with a hook shot, an offensive rebound plus and-one. With three and a half minutes left, the Lakers were up +5. Shortly thereafter, DS17 fouled a three-point attempt (102:96), but Butler from Downtown and Adebayo under the basket kept Miami in the game. Schröder came back in the final minute. His next strong drive brought the next free throws. A controversial call also allowed Victor Oladipo free throws, but he only hit one.
And Schröder didn’t want to lose anyway. With his quick first step, he once again went past the defense towards the basket, a layup high over the board and LA was at +4 with 20 seconds to go. Adebayo kept it exciting with a putback. During the subsequent inbounds play, Reaves decided on a risky pass into the zone to Westbrook and was rewarded. The ball came in, Westbrook sunk the layup but still wasn’t there. After a late three by Max Strus, Schröder showed nerves of steel on the line. Butler still had one last chance to equalize from Downtown, but his attempt ended up ringside. Victory for the Lakers!
NBA: Die Stats-Leader bei Lakers vs. Heat
| Category | Lakers | Heat |
| Points | Dennis Schroeder (32) | Bam Adebayo (30) |
| Rebounds | Thomas Bryant (9) | Bam Adebayo (13) |
| Assists | Russell Westbrook (9) | Victor Oladipo (5) |
| Steals | Dennis Schroeder (4) | Jimmy Butler (3) |
| Blocks | ua Bryant, Beverley (you 1) | Bam Adebayo (3) |
