LeBron James could be on his way to a triple-double, scoring 13 points, dishing out six assists, and grabbing four rebounds in the first half as the Miami Heat lead the listless Los Angeles Lakers 52-37 at halftime in Miami. The Lakers were outscored 27-17 in the second quarter.
"The Lakers just don't have enough ways to score," TNT analyst Steve Kerr said during the broadcast. "If they get bogged down, it could get ugly." It was ugly in the first half for the purple and gold, as the Lakers shot just 31.0% in the first half (13 for 42), including just 2-for-10 from three-point range.
Kobe Bryant struggled mightily on offense in the opening half, hitting just one of eight field goals en route to six points in 20 minutes. Pau Gasol led the Lakers with 13 points and six rebounds in 20 minutes in the first half, while Andrew Bynum was limited to 15 minutes with two early fouls, but poured in eight points and pulled down five rebounds.
The Heat began the second period on a 10-2 run, including a three-pointer from Mike Miller in just his second game back from hernia surgery. Miami made eight of 13 three-point attempts (61.5%) in the first half, compared to making just 10 of 28 two-point attempts (35.7%). Chris Bosh added seven points and five rebounds for Miami.
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