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Victor Oladipo, 22, made the biggest plays, guiding the Orlando
Magic to a 102-101 win over the Miami Heat on Monday night at
AmericanAirlines Arena.
The Heat led by four points with 1:38 left but never scored again.
Oladipo, the second pick in the 2013 NBA Draft after playing for
Crean at Indiana, made three big plays in the final 82 seconds. He
had an assist, a tying layup with 43 seconds left and a game-winning
free throw with 6.5 seconds to lead Orlando's comeback.
"His mode was attacking, getting to the rim," Magic coach Jacque
Vaughn said of Oladipo, who had 22 points, including seven in the
final quarter. "He put his stamp on the game.
"Then he guarded (Heat shooting guard Dwyane) Wade on the other end,
and we got some stops -- that was the most impressive thing."
Wade, 32, the fifth pick in the 2003 draft after playing for Crean
at Marquette, scored 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter.
However, the Heat missed their final four shots -- three of them
jumpers by Wade. The final miss came at the buzzer as Wade's long
two-point try bounced off the rim.
It appeared Wade could have driven to the rim, and he also had point
guard Norris Cole open in the left corner for a 3-point attempt.
Instead, he chose to shoot over two defenders.
"It was a bang-bang play," Wade said. "Once I started my
penetration, our spacing wasn't good enough, and they were able to
double. I had no lane to go to the basket. There wasn't enough time
to get to where I wanted."
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was disappointed with the final possession
as Miami (14-18) fell four games below .500 for the first time all
season.
"We have to work a little more with our execution," Spoelstra said,
"but (Orlando) did a nice job."
The Magic broke a 10-game losing streak in its series with Miami.
The previous time Orlando beat the Heat was in March 2012.
Magic center Nikola Vucevic had 26 points and nine rebounds as
Orlando (13-21) improved to 9-12 on the road. Last season, the Magic
finished 4-37 on the road.
"I got it going with a dunk early on and got in a good rhythm
throughout the game," Vucevic said. "I felt I had a lot of openings
out there, and I just tried to take advantage."
The Magic also got 18 points from small forward Tobias Harris.
Power forward Chris Bosh, back from a calf injury, scored 20 points
and grabbed eight rebounds for the Heat, who fell to 6-12 at home.
It was the 19th time in 24 games that Bosh scored 20 or more points.
"He makes everything look smoother on both ends of the court,"
Spoelstra said of Bosh. "He's a great team defender. He can guard
multiple positions. He communicates extremely well, and,
offensively, he is our best facilitator."
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Miami small forward Danny Granger had 21 points off the bench,
making six of seven 3-point attempts, including five of five in the
first half. Granger, who scored 18 points in Miami's previous game
against the Memphis Grizzlies, is recovered from knee injuries that
slowed him much of the past three years.
The Heat finished their seven-game homestand -- their second-longest
in franchise history -- with a dismal 2-5 record.
Early on, the game was a virtual dead heat. Both teams shot slightly
over 52 percent from the floor in the first quarter, and Orlando
headed into the second with a 26-25 lead.
The Heat surged ahead to take a 53-50 halftime lead. There were
seven lead changes in the first half and three tie scores.
The Magic waited until there was 2:15 left in the third quarter to
score their first points from the foul line. Harris had 11 points in
the period to help Orlando rally, tying the score 77-77 heading into
the fourth quarter.
Both teams shot well from the floor, Orlando hitting 53.2 percent of
its shots and Miami making 52.4 percent.
"It was great to beat a team we have struggled with in the past,"
Vucevic said. "We closed out the game, and that shows growth by our
team."
NOTES: The Heat went 3-5 without F Chris Bosh, who returned from a
calf injury. During his absence, the Heat's scoring average went
from 95.0 to 92.9 and their shooting percentage decreased, too (.470
to .450). ... After receiving no technical fouls in the first 26
games, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has two in six games. ... On
Wednesday, Miami plays at Indiana, where Heat F Danny Granger visits
his former team for the first time. "I've never even been in the
visitors' locker room over there," Granger said. ... Orlando plays
host to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. ... Magic PF Kyle O'Quinn
made his fifth consecutive start, and he scored five points. He
missed 15 of Orlando's first 16 games due to an ankle injury, but
the 2012 second-round pick out of Norfolk State started for the 11th
time in 15 games this month.
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Oladipo,
Magic slip past Heat
