Heat coach Erik Spoelstra summed up the efforts of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in three words: ”Video game numbers,” he said.
Both put up monster stat lines.
And the Miami Heat needed them.
James scored 40 points and added a career-high 16 assists, Wade had 39 points, and the Heat pushed their winning streak to 12 games by outlasting the Sacramento Kings 141-129 in double overtime on Tuesday night.
”Some great stat lines tonight,” James said. ”But I’m happy I was able to do what I did and help our team win.”
Great stat lines might be calling it an understatement. Consider:
– A season high in scoring for James, who capped off the best shooting month of his career.
– A season high in scoring for Wade, who tied a career best with 19 field goals.
– A 36-point night for the Kings’ Marcus Thornton, the most by any non-starter in the NBA this season.
– The 141 points tied a Heat franchise record, set in 1991.
– Add James’ assists to the mix, and he put up the NBA’s first night of at least 40 points and 16 assists since April 1994. The man who did it then? None other than Phoenix guard Kevin Johnson, now, ironically enough, the mayor of Sacramento. And for February, James finished 139 for 217 from the floor, that 64.1 percent clip the best of his career for any month.
”It was a great atmosphere,” said Thornton, who made 11 of 18 shots, including 8 of 12 from 3-point range.
— Reported by Tim Reyolds of the Associated Press
