Coach

Jordan Clarkson Ejected, Lakers Beat Heat

The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Miami Heat to win their second straight home game

In a bizarre Friday night game that saw two players ejected, Luol Deng recorded a double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds and led the Lakers to a convincing, 127-100, victory over his former team, the Miami Heat, at Staples Center, while veteran forward Metta World Peace somehow ended up as the star of the game by committing three fouls in the final 2:12 of the game.

LA won for the second straight home game and for the second time in three games overall on a night when the offense seemed to be working with fluidity. Not coincidentally, six different Lakers scored in double-figures for the second straight home game, and the Lakers scored their season high in points with 127.

Lou Williams led LA in scoring on the night with 24 points, but World Peace drew the loudest ovations of the night when he checked in late in the contest. World Peace's entrance into the game signaled the end of the contest in a literal sense but elevated the atmosphere inside Staples Center.

Due to contractual terms, there is a possibility that had World Peace appeared in his last game on Friday night due an impending deadline arriving on Saturday for non-guaranteed contracts, and if that is to be the case, the crowd didn't seem to hide their love for the 37-year-old. Every time World Peace committed a foul, the crowd went nuts. When he attempted a shot that went in-n-out, every one in attendance seemingly let out a loud sigh in unison.

The end of the game offered a playoff atmosphere from the crowd despite the fact that the Lakers finished with a 27-point victory, and that engagement had more to do with World Peace than anything else.

"My recommendation is to keep him with us, obviously," Lakers coach Luke Walton said when asked about the impending decision on World Peace. "I want the guy around my players. He's a professional. I think it's more beneficial when actually in practice and in the trenches with them, but he's someone that helps the team, just being around."

The other memorable moment in the game came from a scuffle that broke out in the third quarter between Jordan Clarkson and Goran Dragic. Seemingly, the two guards exchanged back and forth minor physical actions before it blew up into Clarkson pushing Dragic with a forearm.

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From there, both team had to be separated. Julius Randle and James Johnson seemingly also had to be separated, with the latter receiving a technical foul for his actions in the aftermath.

"It's the heat of the game," Clarkson explained the action, though he expressed concern over possibly missing Sunday's game due to the incident.

The Lakers' guard added, "That's my first ejection."

Lost in all the madness of World Peace and Clarkson and Dragic fighting, Lakers rookie Brandon Ingram put together one of his better games of the season. The 19-year-old tied a career-high with 17 points on 6-9 shooting from the field to go along with four assists and six rebounds. The former Duke Blue Devil has now scored in double figures in back-to-back games.

Between the fighting, the festive atmosphere and a high point for a first-year Laker, Staples Center offered a fun Friday night.

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