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Point guard Goran Dragic was dealing with a back injury and a deep
bone bruise in his hip, center Chris Andersen had an ankle injury,
forward Udonis Haslem had a knee issue and shooting guard Dwyane
Wade missed the shoot-around because of the flu.
Yet all of them emerged as the Heat moved up in the Eastern
Conference playoff race with a 104-98 win over the Brooklyn Nets at
AmericanAirlines Arena.
"I knew the defense was going to be watching me early, so I set my
guys up and gave everyone confidence," said Wade, who had game-highs
in points (28) and assists (nine). "And after I did that, I was free
to shoot ... so why not?"
Wade scored at least 25 points for the fourth consecutive game.
After Brooklyn pulled within five points in the final minute, Wade
got an assist on guard Mario Chalmers' 3-pointer to help seal the
win.
Besides Wade, Miami also got a boost from Andersen, who had a
career-high-tying 18 points along with a season-high 14 rebounds,
and Dragic, who had 17 points.
Haslem came off the bench to chip in seven points and a season-high
nine rebounds in 19 minutes.
Andersen, who played 30 minutes, made eight of nine shots from the
floor. He and Haslem combined to give the Heat 25 points and 23
rebounds in 49 minutes at the center position where Whiteside
normally starts.
"He's been pretty banged up the past couple of days," Heat coach
Erik Spoelstra said of Andersen. "It is surprising he was able to
play and play that effectively.
"It just shows the level of his toughness. And then he tweaked
something again in the second half, but he gives you everything he
has.
"Guys are playing in pain, and they are not doing it for themselves.
They are doing it for the next guy."
The Heat (29-35) moved past the Hornets into eighth place in the
Eastern Conference playoff race. Charlotte lost to the Sacramento
Kings earlier Wednesday.
The Nets (25-38) lost their fifth consecutive game. They are a long
shot to make the playoffs in the East.
Brooklyn got 18 points from point guard Deron Williams and 15 points
and 14 rebounds from center Brook Lopez. Guard Jarrett Jack had 16
of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, including 13 straight Nets
points.
The Heat got off to a great start, making their first nine attempts
from the floor and taking a 22-16 lead by the time they missed a
shot. It was the first time in 12 years that the Heat started a game
with nine straight makes.
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Miami finished the quarter shooting 67 percent, taking a 34-23 lead.
"We could have laid down pretty easily in the first quarter, but we
battled back," Nets coach Lionel Hollins said. "We played pretty
evenly after that."
The Heat did not turn the ball over until there was a minute left in
the second quarter.
Miami went into halftime with a 62-51 lead. Its two turnovers, 40
points in the paint and 19 fast-break points were all season bests
for any half this season.
The Heat held Brooklyn to 16 points in the third quarter and took an
82-67 lead into the fourth.
The Nets made a game of it late -- thanks to Jack's red-hot fourth
quarter. But the Nets had 21 turnovers for the game -- 11 more than
the Heat -- and that doomed Brooklyn.
"Every game is different," Hollins said. "Tonight we had a lot of
turnovers."
NOTES: Nets SG Markel Brown was assessed a technical foul in the
first quarter after he elbowed Heat G Mario Chalmers in the
midsection. ... Heat C Hassan Whiteside did not play against the
Nets because he was suspended one game by the NBA. The suspension
was a reaction to Whiteside elbowing Celtics C Kelly Olynyk from
behind in the previous game. ... The Nets, who have lost four
straight home games, are hoping to play better on their four-game
road trip. Their next stop is Philadelphia on Saturday. ... During
their 0-4 homestand, the Nets allowed 107 points per game. ... Miami
will visit Toronto on Friday before returning home on Monday to face
LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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