OAKLAND, Calif. — With one eye on the defense and the other on the clock, LeBron James let the time tick down before carrying the Miami Heat into the All-Star break in a way only he could.
James capped one of his best games of the season in dramatic fashion, making a step-back 3-pointer with less than a second remaining to propel the Heat past the Golden State Warriors 111-110 Wednesday night and into the break on a high note.
“I was going for the win the whole time,” James said.
With teammate Dwyane Wade scratched from the lineup with a nerve irritation in his left foot, James shouldered the load for the two-time defending NBA champions. He finished with 36 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists, saving his best moment for last.
After James’ fellow All-Star Stephen Curry hit a bank shot to start a three-point play that put the Warriors ahead by two, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra chose not to call timeout.
Instead, James got the ball in the half court and swished a 27-footer over Andre Iguodala with two-tenths of a second left. James stared into the stands, then patted his chest and high-stepped on the sideline, leaving the announced sellout crowd of 19,596 stunned and silent.
“Better offense,” James said, “beats better defense every time.”
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