(Reuters) – The Miami Heat demolished the Oklahoma City Thunder 121-106 yesterday to win the National Basketball Association championship 4-1, sweeping the last four games of the series.
LeBron James led an outstanding team effort with a brilliant all-round game, grabbing a triple-double with 26 points, 11 rebounds and a game-high 13 assists.
Six Heat players scored in double figures, including Chris Bosh with 24 and reserve Mike Miller with 23, who went 7-of-8 from beyond the three-point arc in a spectacular shooting display for the Heat. Miami pulled away in the third quarter when they ran off 16 points in a row to build a 25-point lead and send the raucous standing-room AmericanAirlines Arena crowd into an early celebration.
It was Miami’s second NBA title following a 2006 triumph and the first for three-times league Most Valuable Player James, who finally realized his dream of winning a championship ring in his third trip to an NBA Finals.
Three-times NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant led the young Thunder team with 32 points with Russell Westbrook and James Harden adding 19 points for the losers.