OKLAHOMA CITY – With LeBron James playing at his best level yet, the Miami Heat powered into the All-Star break with a reminder to the Oklahoma City Thunder that the NBA championship still resides on South Beach.
James had 39 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, and narrowly missed extending his record-setting streak of high-scoring games combined with top-notch accuracy, as the Heat trampled Oklahoma City 110-100 in a Thursday night showcase.
James was in position to continue his NBA record run of games with at least 30 points and 60 percent shooting to seven, but missed from a couple steps beyond the 3-point line as the shot clock ran down with just over a minute left and Miami up 10.
That dropped him to 14-for-24 in the game, or 58 percent. All that mattered to him, though, was that Miami’s winning streak reached a season-best seven straight games.
“Winning is hard to come by in professional sports. That’s what it’s about,” James said. “Sixty percent doesn’t matter. Winning is all that matters.”
“I thought we imposed our will, playing our style of basketball,” said Dwyane Wade, who had 13 points and eight assists before fouling out with 3:29 to play.
Kevin Durant had 40 points and eight rebounds, but missed his first seven shots as Oklahoma City fell hopelessly behind. It wasn’t enough to measure up against James, who beat him in last year’s MVP race and then the Finals before the two won a gold medal together at the London Olympics.
“It’s fun. I take on the challenge every time we’re playing,” Durant said. “He had a great game. He was making some tough shots, man — one-leggers, fadeaways in corners, 3s. So, you’ve got to tip your hat to that.
“I just wanted to keep putting pressure on him. I missed a few and then I started to hit in the fourth. I just tried to will my team back in the game, but it didn’t work.”
Russell Westbrook had 26 points and 10 assists, with six turnovers, for the Thunder. He had 20 points in the first half to keep Oklahoma City from getting run out of its own gym.
The Thunder fell to 23-4 at home and suffered back-to-back losses for only the second time all season — with the Heat responsible for the second loss on both occasions.
The defeat also dropped Oklahoma (39-14) to even in the loss column with Miami (36-14) as the two potentially jockey for home-court advantage if there’s a Finals rematch.
Clippers 125, Lakers 101
In Los Angeles, Chris Paul had 24 points and 13 assists, Blake Griffin scored 18 of his 22 points in a spectacular first quarter, and the Clippers cemented their supremacy in Los Angeles with a victory over the Lakers.
Chauncey Billups hit five 3-pointers while scoring 21 points for the Clippers, who never trailed as they roared into the All-Star break by clinching the season series in their city rivalry for the first time in 20 years.
The Clippers have won the Staples Center cotenants’ first three games of the year, with the longtime underdogs burying the 16-time champions in this latest meeting under a wave of 16 3-pointers.
Kobe Bryant had 20 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, who head to the break in 10th place in the Western Conference.
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