Heat Hold Off Bryant, Lakers, 78-75, Without Wade
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com/AP) — Mario Chalmers scored nine of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, Hassan Whiteside added 15 points and the Miami Heat completed a Staples Center sweep with a 78-75 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
Chris Bosh scored eight points on 4-of-17 shooting for the Heat, who followed up their surprise victory over the Clippers two days ago by winning an ugly game against the Lakers despite losing Dwyane Wade to a strained left hamstring late in the first half.
Kobe Bryant scored 12 points on 3-of-19 shooting in his return to the Lakers' lineup after missing three of the last four games to rest.
Bryant's 3-pointer with 31 seconds to play trimmed Miami's lead to three points, but he missed a potential tying 3-pointer with 2 seconds left.
The game marked the 4th-worst shooting percentage of his career with a minimum of 15 shots taken, at 15.6%.
Ed Davis and Jordan Hill also scored 12 points apiece for the Lakers, who have lost eight of 11.
In its fifth straight victory over the Lakers, Miami never trailed after jumping out to an 18-0 lead to open the game. Los Angeles silenced its home crowd by missing its first 11 shots and two free throws before Bryant finally hit a jumper more than 7 1/2 minutes in.
Nick Young went 2 for 11 and Wesley Johnson went 3 for 13 for the Lakers.
Wade finished with four points in 14 minutes. The three-time NBA champion missed seven games in November with a hamstring strain, and his availability is uncertain for the final two games of Miami's West Coast road trip this week.
Bryant sat out six of the Lakers' previous 11 games to rest from the accumulated wear of 19 NBA seasons, but coach Byron Scott determined he was healthy enough to play against the Heat, albeit on a strict limit of 32 minutes.
Bryant missed 11 of his first 12 shots, including four 3-pointers, before finally hitting a 3-pointer with 2:44 to play, trimming Miami's lead to 72-68. The Lakers missed 15 of their first 16 3-point attempts overall.
The Lakers got off to one of the worst starts imaginable, with all five starters combining on their miserable shooting. Los Angeles missed 18 of its 22 shots in the first quarter, yet trailed only 44-34 at halftime with a second-quarter rally. Miami's lead nearly vanished several times in the second half, but the Heat repeatedly rallied to stay ahead.
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