Eddie Jones scored 29 points (10 in the fourth quarter) and Alonzo Mourning added 18 as the Heat rallied for an 89-87 victory over the Indiana Pacers, snapping a six-game losing streak.
Trailing 81-79, Miami scored the next nine points. Jones' driving layup tied it with 1:34 left and a short jumper by Mourning put it ahead for good with 47 seconds to go.
But the play of the game came 27 seconds later, with the Heat nursing a tenuous two-point lead. Indiana rookie point guard Jamaal Tinsley missed a 12-foot jumper and the rebound went through the hands of several Pacers before Rod Strickland grabbed it. He made two free throws to seal Miami's first win since December 15 at Houston.
 Despite the efforts of Austin Croshere and Al Harrington, a victory over Alonzo Mourning and the Heat was just out of reach. Ron Hoskins /NBAE/Getty Images |
"It's very encouraging. The only way to win is to have great players play very well every night. You somehow have to conjure it up and play well. The main difference is that we fought hard to win the game."
Riley also said the Heat are hoping to regain some of the respect that has been lost in the disastrous first two months of the season.
"The team has been maimed and shown no respect from officials," he added. "They are shown as a losing team. Other players trash-talk us. The players are losing respect every game. They are losing that dignity that they have fought hard to get."
A staple of recent versions of the Heat has been solid interior play, especially defensively. Miami came through against Indiana, limiting young forwards Jermaine O'Neal and Al Harrington to eight points apiece.
"They did a great job of forcing us to do things that we shouldn't have been doing," Harrington said. "Obviously, we didn't play well and it resulted in a loss."
"They played hard and did a great job of keeping me on the bench, where I can't be effective," O'Neal added. "Give them credit, they worked their game plan pretty well."
The duo combined to go 3-of-9 from the field in the fourth quarter, when Indiana made just 2-of-11 shots.
Even in victory, the Heat managed to match a record for offensive futility. They played their 29th straight game without scoring 100 points, tying the NBA mark set by the 1997-98 Orlando Magic and equaled by the 1999-2000 Chicago Bulls.
Jalen Rose and Jonathan Bender each scored 20 points, but the Pacers shot just 37 percent (31-of-83). The combination of Tinsley, Bender, and O'Neal made just eight of 40 shots from the floor.
The Pacers appeared in control in the first half and took a 46-36 lead into the locker room.
But Jim Jackson, Jones and Rod Strickland sparked a 13-3 burst early in the third quarter.
Strickland, who just missed a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, rebounded Tinsley's missed jumper and fed Jones, who converted a three-point play. After Jackson's jumper, Jones went in for an uncontested dunk that sliced the deficit to 46-43 with 10:26 left.
Indiana finally scored on Bender's dunk off a turnover with 8:51 left. But Strickland completed a three-point play with 7:33 left.
The Heat shot 56 percent (9-of-16) in the third quarter, held the Pacers to 26 percent (6-of-23) and closed within 64-62 heading to the final period.
"We have to grow from this," Jones said. "This was just one win. We have to keep things going and working together. The big difference for us tonight over a lot of our losses, we were making more shots down the stretch and making a lot less turnovers that we have this season.
"We really needed this win, but we have to continue to play hard and gain back the respect of other teams, officials and our coaches. It's not going to be that easy."