Heat pass Pacers for sixth consecutive win

[January 11, 2018]  Guard Goran Dragic scored 20 points to lead seven Heat players in double figures, and Miami earned a 114-106 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night in Indianapolis.

The Heat (24-17) have won six in a row and nine of their past 11 games.

Heat center Hassan Whiteside scored 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting and grabbed a team-high 15 rebounds. Tyler Johnson, Bam Adebayo and Wayne Ellington each scored 15 points, while Josh Richardson had 14 points and Kelly Olynyk finished with 11. Dragic added a game-high nine assists.

Miami, which used just eight players, snapped a 10-game losing streak at Indiana.

Victor Oladipo led the Pacers (21-20) with 26 points. Domantas Sabonis added 18 points.

The Pacers, who shot 50 percent overall, were hampered by hitting just 1 of 18 3-point attempts. The Heat made 13 of 30 3-point tries and were 43 of 81 (53.1 percent) overall from the field.

Indiana shot 43 of 86 (50 percent) from the floor.

The Pacers tied it at 97-all with Lance Stephenson's 14-foot jumper. Johnson put the Heat ahead for good at 100-97 with a 3-pointer with 4:08 to go. Indiana closed the deficit to one point twice before Ellington sank a 31-foot 3-pointer to give the Heat control at 109-103 with 25 seconds left.

Before the game, the Pacers announced that center Myles Turner (elbow) would sit out against the Heat and also Friday night against visiting the Cleveland Cavaliers. Sabonis started in Turner's place.

 

 Heat guard Goran Dragic (7) dribbles the ball and is fouled by Indiana Pacers guard Darren Collison (2) in the first quarter at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Heat were playing without forward James Johnson, who was suspended for one game for his altercation with Toronto Raptors forward Serge Ibaka, who also received a one-game suspension. Both players were ejected in the third quarter after trading blows Tuesday night.

Miami used a balanced attack to lead 58-47 at halftime. The Pacers used an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to 65-63 with 4:58 left in the third quarter. Miami rebuilt the lead to 84-78 after three quarters.

Trailing 90-80 in the fourth quarter, the Pacers rode a 9-2 run to close the gap to 92-89. Tyler Johnson sank a 3-pointer to push Miami's lead to 95-89.

--Field Level Media

[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.