 and Goran Dragic (torn left plantar fascia). The Heat scored 39 points in the third quarter and that was only good enough to cut a 14-point halftime deficit to a 10-point hole going into the fourth, mainly because they just couldn't get enough stops.''Look, I love these guys. I love the way we compete,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ''We have to figure out how to overcome this and get over the top.'' Game 3 is Sunday night. It's unclear if Dragic, Adebayo or both could return; each lobbied to play Friday night, before the Heat had to make the call to keep them sidelined.It's also unclear how much it will matter.This is the 24th time that James has had a 2-0 series lead; his teams in Cleveland, Miami and LA are 23-0 in the previous instances. And the last time the Lakers franchise wasted a 2-0 lead was in the 1969 finals against Boston.''Until we win four games, we haven't accomplished our goal,'' Lakers guard Alex Caruso said. ''It's been over a year together and we've talked about the same goal from Day One. We're still here chasing that same goal. Until we get four wins, we're staying hungry.'' Kelly Olynyk scored 24 points for the Heat, who trailed by as many as 32 in Game 1 and - even without Adebayo and Dragic - were far more competitive in Game 2. Miami got within nine points in the fourth, but never got close enough to truly put a scare into the Lakers.''Maybe we've just got to play a lot harder, to know that's how we're going to squeak out a win in the end,'' Butler said. ''There really isn't too much to say to our guys. We understand what we have to do.'' Tyler Herro had 17, Kendrick Nunn scored 13 and Jae Crowder had 12 for the Heat. Herro and Meyers Leonard took Dragic's and Adebayo's spots in the starting lineup.''We had it right there on the edge, but we just couldn't push it over,'' Olynyk said. ''We can build on that.'' Rajon Rondo had 16 points, while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kyle Kuzma each had 11 for the Lakers - who improved to 4-0 in these playoffs when wearing the Kobe Bryant-inspired ''Black Mamba'' uniforms, one of many tributes to the Lakers legend who died Jan. 26 in a helicopter crash.''This is what it's all about,'' James said. ''We're thinking about the Bryant family ... and hopefully we're making them proud.'' TIP-INSHeat: Miami led for 53 seconds in the first quarter and have led for 10:44 out of 96 minutes played in the series. ... The Heat have rallied from a 2-0 series hole only once in eight previous tries, that one being the 2006 NBA Finals. ... Spoelstra collided with official Eric Lewis while trying to call time with 7:49 left. They both got a laugh out of it.Lakers: Jeanie Buss, the team's owner and president, was in the bubble for the game. ... Flea, the bassist from the Red Hot Chili Peppers - formed in Los Angeles - performed the national anthem. ... James, in his 10th NBA Finals, has a 2-0 lead in the title series for the first time. ... The Lakers took a season-high 47 3s, making 16.YOUNGEST STARTERHerro, at 20 years, 256 days, became the youngest player to start an NBA Finals game. He did so eight days younger than Magic Johnson was when he started Game 1 of the title series for the Lakers against the Philadelphia 76ers on May 4, 1980. They're the only 20-year-olds to start; Tony Parker is the third youngest, at 21 years, 18 days for San Antonio in Game 1 against New Jersey on June 4, 2003.CLUTCH 3'SThe Lakers had a knack in the second half for making clutch 3's whenever it seemed like Miami was poised to threaten. Rondo made a 3 with 37.2 seconds left in the third to push a nine-point lead back to 12, Kuzma connected 47 seconds into the fourth to make the lead 13 and, with the Heat within nine, Markieff Morris hit with 9:41 left to make it 111-99.---More NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Oct 01, 2020Despite a dominating performance in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers are far from content as they head into Game 2 on Friday."We've got so much more work to do," said LeBron James, who had 25 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists in the Lakers' 116-98 win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday near Orlando. "The job is not done, and we're not satisfied with winning one game. It's that simple." Anthony Davis had 34 points on 11-of-21 shooting in the first NBA Finals of his eight-year career. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 13 points, Danny Green chipped in 11 and Alex Caruso contributed 10 for Los Angeles, which led by as much as 32 at one point.Injuries are a major concern for Miami. Guard Goran Dragic (plantar fascia tear in left foot) and center Bam Adebayo (neck strain) were listed as doubtful on Thursday's injury report. Both were forced to leave Wednesday's loss."You have to go through your Plan A, Plan B, Plan C," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Thursday, according to the Miami Herald. "We love getting to work with this group. ... It's just looking for solutions and trying to get to a better version of our game against a quality opponent." Dragic did not play in the second half, finishing with six points on 3-of-8 shooting in 15 minutes. Adebayo also did not come back after leaving midway through the third quarter. He had eight points on 2-of-8 shooting in 21 minutes.Without them, particularly Adebayo inside, the Lakers controlled the glass and outrebounded the Heat 54-36. Los Angeles also went to the line more, hitting 25 of 27 attempts to 11 of 14 for Miami. Davis was 10-for-10."The Lakers set the tenor, the force, the physicality for the majority of the game, and they just took control and we weren't able to get it back," Spoelstra said.Jimmy Butler had 23 points while Kendrick Nunn delivered 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting off the bench for the Heat.Tyler Herro finished with 14 points but converted just 6-of-18 shots and 2-of-8 3-pointers. Jae Crowder added 12 points but rookie guard Duncan Robinson, who averaged 12.5 points in the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics, didn't score in 27 minutes."We've just got to be tougher," Butler said. "We've got to put up more of a fight. I don't think that we did that and then it doesn't help whenever we don't make shots. It's been that way all year long whenever we start to miss a couple of shots, we don't do what we're supposed to on the other end." The Lakers performed well on both ends. After trailing by 13 in the first quarter, the Lakers blitzed the Heat with a 77-32 swing from midway through the second quarter to the middle of the third after a Davis dunk put them up 87-55."I don't think at the beginning that we were physical enough," James said. "You actually have to get a feel for how hard Miami plays. I think they smacked us in the mouth, and we got a sense of that." --Field Level Media
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