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Heat hit Los Angeles on Christmas

In the absence of Shaquille O`Neal, who is recovering from knee operations and has played only four games this season, the annual meeting between the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Lakers has focused on the match-up between Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. Wade`s dominating performance in a game between two depleted teams (the Lakers are playing without the injured Lamar Odom), has made any talk of a personal match-up irrelevant.

Wade scored 40 points on 12-20 shooting and 15-16 from the foul-line, and dished 11 assists. His Heat won 101-85, their third straight victory in these Christmas meetings. Bryant, meanwhile, finished the game with only 16 points, well below his 27.8 points average. The Lakers star missed his first six shots and finished a poor 4-of-17 from the floor. The Lakers are now 18-10, while the Heat are one game below .500 with a 13-14 record.

Wade received help from Jason Kapono (11 points) and Dorell Wright (10 points). It was Miami`s fourth win in the last five games. Of Wade`s performance, team-mate Alonzo Mourning said "Pretty entertaining to watch. He`s a special player."