NBA Top Stories - Miami Heat, LA Lakers Win

 
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- LeBron James and Chris Bosh scored 28 points each, as the Miami Heat made it 21 straight wins, beating the Milwaukee Bucks 107-94 on Friday night.

Only three other teams have won 20 in a row in one season, and the Heat now trail just the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers (33) and the 2007-08 Houston Rockets (22) after moving ahead of the 1970-71 Bucks.

They withstood an early scare when Dwyane Wade walked to the locker room with a neck strain after crashing to the court. Miami led by as much as 17 in the third quarter, then withstood a push by the Bucks to remain unbeaten since a loss at Indiana on Feb. 1.

Miami next plays Sunday at Toronto, where the winning streak began on Feb. 3.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - After hobbling around on a severely sprained left ankle for one quarter, Kobe Bryant took himself out of the game and made sure he was the most valuable player on the Los Angeles Lakers' bench.

He exhorted his teammates to play hard, to read the defense and to take advantage of any openings they found against Indiana. He diagrammed plays and pulled players aside, coaching them up all night. Then, Dwight Howard completed a tiebreaking three-point play with 90 seconds to go, and the Lakers pulled away from Indiana for a 99-93 win.

Bryant, known as a remarkably quick healer who hasn't missed a game since the 2009-10 season, gallantly played less than 48 hours after turning his ankle when he landed on Dahntay Jones' foot in the waning seconds of Wednesday's loss at Atlanta.

Ex-NBA player banned in Philippines for "choking" team mate

Former NBA player Renaldo Balkman has been banned from the Philippine Basketball Association in the Philippines for choking a teammate during a game.

The former New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets player has also been slapped with a fine of 250,000 Philippine pesos ($6,100) over the incident, Philippine Basketball Association commissioner Chito Salud said in a statement on Monday.

Howard leads Lakers over Bulls 90-81

The Los Angeles Lakers routed the Chicago Bulls, 90-81, at home to improve to 33-31. It marks the first time this season they have been two games over .500. The Lakers also moved a half-game ahead of the Utah Jazz and into sole possession of the No. 8 playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Dwight Howard had 16 points and 21 rebounds; Kobe Bryant finished 19 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds; and Steve Nash chipped in 16 points. They led by as many as 18 points in the third period.

"We're very focused," Bryant said. "We know what we have to do and what lies ahead. Everybody's locked in."

"I think I am getting a little bit better," said Howard, who was 0 for 5 from the free throw line. ''I'm just going to keep working on my conditioning, get my timing back and just keep going hard.''

The Lakers, who have won eight of 10 since the All-Star break, led by four points at halftime. But point guard Steve Nash keyed a 21-7 third-quarter spurt that put the Lakers up by as many as 18 points. Nash scored 10 of his 16 points in the third quarter.

Tiger Woods wins in Miami

Tiger Woods had a dominant win at the World Golf Championships tournament at Doral with a two-shot victory over Steve Stricker.

Graeme McDowell's day fell apart on the back nine and the Northern Irishman tied for third with Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia and Phil Mickelson.

This is Tiger Woods second win in 2013 and moved him closer to Rory McIlroy's number one spot in the world rankings.

Former Knicks Renaldo Balkman choke a teammate

Former NBA player Renaldo Balkman who used to play for the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets has apologized for choking a teammate during a game with his new team in the Philippine Basketball Association.

Balkman, 28 at 6'8" playing for the Petron Blaze Boosters, argued with a referee  and shoved the referee's arm then pushed away an assistant coach and a couple of other teammates. When Arwind Santos intervened they exchanged shoves before Balkman wrapped his hands around Santos' neck and choked him.

After the game Balkman sent out a series of apologies on Twitter:

"I wld like to apologize to the fans, Petron Blaze, my teammates, the PBA and especially @tubidronald71 and @Arwind029," he tweeted, adding, "I got caught up in the moment of a very intense game. I respect @Arwind029 as a person & player. I am proud to be part of @PetronBlaze fam."

Juwan Howard signs 10-day with Heat

The Miami Heat sign Juwan Howard 40, on Saturday to a 10-day contract. It will be his 19th NBA season.

Howard had been a respected leader on the Heat and was popular with teammates, coaches and management. He played sparingly in three Miami playoff victories on the way to his first championship ring in 2012.

Howard has averaged 13.4 points and 6.2 rebounds. Howard was drafted fifth overall by Washington in 1994 and was a member of Michigan's Fab 5 with Chris Webber and Jalen Rose.

50 Cent kiss Denied by Erin Andrews at Daytona 500

Erin Andrews was in the crowded pit road at Daytona 500 when she chance upon 50 Cent. 50 Cent tried to kiss Erin Andrews but was denied. It was really awkward.

Earlier on it was reported that 50 tweeted after arriving at Daytona "Damn I don't see no black people lol." Speaking of Twitter, this has led to plenty of comments being made on the social media site regarding the attempted 50 Cent Erin Andrews kiss.