The Heat flirted with disaster. But when the time came to put up or shut up, Miami remained committed to its winning ways of late.
For three and a half quarters, the Philadelphia 76ers did everything in their power to end the Heat's longest winning streak of the season and douse the hottest team in the league. That plan backfired when Dwyane Wade finally woke up, when Dorell Wright refused to cool off and when the Heat's bench didn't bow down.
Sure, there were quite a few questionable calls that went in the Heat's favor. But that's what happens when things are going your way, especially at home. After sputtering for most of the game, the Heat managed to get rolling just in time to escape with a 99-95 victory against the Sixers at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Wade and the starters were off. But the bench provided a major boost to extend the Heat's winning streak to nine games. That streak matches the nine-game run the Heat went on during the 2006-07 season. It was a tough, tough victory. But, as Wade said afterward, this team is finding a way to win even when it doesn't exactly play at its best level.
"As much as we would all love for it to be pretty all the time, it's not going to be that way," Wade said. "We struggled. But the important thing is we found a way to win."
D. WADE'S DOINGS: This wasn't going to be another of those 30 or 40-point nights for Wade. That was evident almost from the start. Wade missed his first four shots, was scoreless in the first quarter and was limited to eight points into the third quarter. His layups were rolling off the rim, his jumper wasn't with him, his rhythm was left in Minnesota. But then he summoned enough with his aggressive play to help push the Heat to victory. Had it not been for Dorell Wright's steady play, I'm not sure if Wade would have had enough in him to completely overcome the Sixers. But there was enough of a spark in the fourth to get it done. Wade had 16 of his 22 points in the second half, including eight in the fourth quarter. He made up for two crucial missed free throws in the final minutes by making two in the final seconds. Wade was 8 of 18 from the field and 6 of 11 from the foul line. Still, Miami survived.
TURNING POINT: That came in the fourth quarter, when Wright drilled his third three-pointer of the period to pull the Heat to within 89-88 with 4:35 left. Wade then scored six straight points to put Miami ahead 94-91 with 2:24 left. The Sixers still had a few more answers. But it was during that two-minute spurt when it was obvious the Heat would muster enough strength to finish strong.
WINNING/LOSING EDGE: Another opponent held below 100 points by the Heat. Miami has now gone nine straight games without giving up triple figures, which is the longest streak in the league. In fact, the Heat has held 15 of its last 16 foes below the century mark, which seems to be the magic number for Miami. Miami outscored Philly 21-11 from the free-throw line. That was a huge difference in this game, considering how some of the calls went in the second half.
HEAD-SCRATCHER: For a while in second half, when the Sixers were charging ahead of the Heat, a good chunk of the damage was done by players who used to be members of the Heat, who were traded by the Heat or who the Heat bypassed in the draft for other options. It started with Jason Kapono, who somehow found the foot speed to beat Wade off the dribble to score a layup off the glass. Then, rookie guard Jodie Meeks, who the Heat passed up with its second-round pick last summer, drove for a layup to put Philly ahead 84-82. Center Jason Smith, a player the Heat actually picked in the first round of the 2007 draft and traded for Daequan Cook (picked one spot later by Philly), slammed home an alley oop to increase the lead to six. Kapono then nailed consecutive jumpers, and the Sixers were ahead 91-90. This also comes a day after Heat cast-off Earl Barron goes off for 17 points and 18 rebounds in New York's win over Boston. Did the Heat give up on some of these guys too soon after spending money and time grooming some of these guys? Or did they simply develop after leaving Miami?
KEY CONTRIBUTION: It's a good thing the Heat held onto Wright after Pat Riley seriously thought about trading him so the team could eliminate its luxury-tax debt. Aside from a couple of off the court issues, Wright has done his part on the court to show that it was a good decision for the Heat. His versatility, improved shooting and defense were all on point Wednesday. Wright had 19 points off the bench, including nine in the fourth quarter on three three-pointers. He also had four rebounds and a steal.
UP NEXT: Detroit Pistons at Heat, 7:30 p.m. Friday - AmericanAirlines Arena.
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