Heat-76ers Preview

By JUSTIN EINHORN
Posted Mar 15 2012 1:40PM

Though things haven't gone well lately for the Miami Heat, especially on the road, visiting Philadelphia might be a welcome sight.

The Heat go for a 10th straight regular-season win over the 76ers - a team they have really dominated in 2012 - and enter Friday night trying to avoid their longest road losing streak in nearly four years.

This matchup caps a three-game trip for Miami (31-11), and the first two did not go well. One night after blowing a 14-point lead in an overtime loss to Orlando, the Heat couldn't take advantage of Derrick Rose's absence and fell 106-102 to Chicago on Wednesday after failing to make up a 17-point deficit.

Dwyane Wade had 36 points and is averaging 30.7 over the past three games. LeBron James scored 35, but for the second straight game just two of his points came after the third quarter.

A victory at Portland in its return from the All-Star break gave Miami 20 wins in 23 games, but the Heat have since gone 3-4 with each loss coming on the road.

"We had to break like everybody else and that's how fragile things are in this league," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "But the character and the makeup of our group, we'll work together to find a way to get back to where we were. We were playing excellent basketball three weeks ago, but that's in the past."

The Heat are at risk of their worst road losing streak since the season before Spoelstra took over. They haven't dropped five consecutive games away from home since losing their final nine of 2007-08.

One of the Heat's biggest problems on the road has been clearing the glass. They've been outrebounded by an average of 13.2 in the last four road games, giving up 61 offensive boards.

"We've been playing some big teams to start the second half of the season," said James, who was averaging 10.4 rebounds this month before having five Wednesday. "... We're undersized, but we just gotta figure it out. We gotta put more bodies on guys."

Miami has had no such trouble in two matchups with the 76ers (25-18) this year, outrebounding them 99-69 while winning each game by at least 20 points.

The Heat have won the last nine regular-season meetings, and their only loss in the past 14 overall against Philadelphia came during the first round of last year's playoffs.

The 76ers had won three in a row before losing 111-94 at Indiana on Wednesday. They forced eight turnovers, one off a season low, and let the Pacers shoot 56.6 percent - the best by a Philadelphia opponent in more than a year.

"I thought this was our poorest defensive game all season," said coach Doug Collins, whose team leads the NBA in points allowed (87.9 ppg) and field-goal percentage defense (41.8).

The Sixers haven't allowed 100 points in back-to-back games all season but now face a Miami team that leads the Eastern Conference in scoring at 102.5 per game.

However, the Heat would have failed to reach 100 for the fourth straight game Wednesday if not for two late 3-pointers by James Jones. Chris Bosh has averaged 14.3 points on 37.5 percent shooting in those contests, while Shane Battier and Mario Chalmers have combined to go 3 for 26 from 3-point range.

Evan Turner has averaged 21.8 points and 10.3 rebounds in the past four games for Philadelphia, which has won its last two home games after losing five of six.

The 76ers could have a new player in uniform, having acquired swingman Sam Young from Memphis shortly before Thursday's trade deadline.

Heat survive scare and beat 76ers 84-78

By DAN GELSTON
Posted Mar 17 2012 12:50AM

PHILADELPHIA (AP) A rough day of upsets for No. 2 seeds in the NCAA tournament nearly stretched to the NBA.

Missouri went down and so did Duke.

And the Miami Heat were another No. 2 seed that almost let a dose of March Madness totally spoil their day.

The Heat, of course, have the kind of arsenal the college programs don't - a couple of superstars in LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

James scored 29 points, Wade had 12 points and 10 rebounds and the Miami Heat held on to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 84-78 on Friday night.

"That's the luxury of having two guys can do that," Wade said. "He had it going, obviously, and I'm there if he needs me."

The Heat needed James and Wade after a 29-point lead in the third quarter fell to single digits. Led by a hard-charging Lou Williams and Evan Turner, the Sixers sliced Miami's lead to four points.

James, though, refused to let the lead completely slip away. He hit a pull-up jumper and sank a pair of free throws in the final 90 seconds to help the Heat end a four-game road losing streak. The Heat had lost two straight games overall.

"It's never good to give up a 20-point lead," James said. "But when you have to, when you have to close out a game, it's good to see you can keep the lead and win."

The Heat, the defending conference champions, trail only the Bulls in the East.

Heat forward Shane Battier, who starred at Duke, was well aware that Lehigh upset the Blue Devils 75-70 to become the second No. 15 seed to beat a No. 2 during a wild Friday in the NCAA tournament.

"The Philly faithful were very kind to give me updates the whole time, in the way the Philly fans only can," Battier said.

At least he didn't go 0 for 2.

Sixers part owner Will Smith brought his power family - wife Jada Pinkett Smith and son Jaden Smith - to the Wells Fargo Center, and sat courtside for the second time this season. He stood and applauded when the Sixers went on their burst, and waved and smiled at fans.

Turner had 13 points, Williams 12, and Andre Iguodala had 11 points and 10 rebounds.

"I thought that once we got a little angry, we channeled it in the right direction," Sixers coach Doug Collins said. "You don't want to dig yourself that kind of hole, but it's sure nice to know the game's not over."

Smith, filming a movie in the area, showed up at halftime and worked his movie star mojo on the Sixers.

Down 61-32 early in the third, the Sixers whittled the lead to 13 by the end of the quarter, then got hot in the fourth. Jodie Meeks hit a 3-pointer, followed with a dunk, then Turner made a 3 to cut it to 73-68.

Turner has turned into Philadelphia's best player since his recent promotion to the starting lineup. He had six points through three quarters, but scored seven in the first 9 minutes of the fourth. His jumper made it a five-point game, and then he fought for an offensive rebound and wiggled his way through a pair of defenders to make it 77-72.

Smith tossed T-shirts to the crowd as 20,396 fans were going wild as another massive upset was brewing.

It was just too late.

Williams tried, hitting a 20-footer to make it 80-76 with 90 seconds left.

James coolly answered with a pull-up jumper. Williams drove the baseline for a layup that made it 82-78. James made two free throws and the Heat could breathe a huge sigh of relief.

They almost lost to a Sixers team that missed their last 13 shots of the first half and scored a season low in points for a half (30).

"When we got down 27, we said we were going to keep fighting and get back in this because we felt we could," forward Elton Brand said.

Some of the players were star-struck with Smith in the front row. Chris Bosh, who scored 10 points, took repeated looks at the "Miami" singer each time he was around Smith. Smith cracked up the crowd when he mouthed the words to "Gettin' Jiggy With It" as it played during a timeout. His hat askew, he stood and applauded when the Sixers cut it to 69-55 late in the third.

The Fresh Prince gave the Sixers fans a reason to go wild.

The team sure didn't in the first half.

With a trip to Chicago up ahead on Saturday, the Sixers might want to bring him along.

The Heat appeared on their way toward a romp and raced to a 27-point lead in the first half. James hit a sweet fadeaway for his first basket, then tossed in a 3-pointer on the run for his second one. By the time he hit a step-back jumper late in the first, the Heat led 23-7.

James made 12 of 20 shots and had seven rebounds and eight assists.

"I felt great today," James said. "It felt like I had my legs. I've been feeling pretty good on the road."

Playing the Sixers, a team they knocked out of the first round in last season's playoffs, was just what the Heat needed to bust their road slump. The Heat dropped games at Utah and to the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this month, then lost this week at Orlando and Chicago. The beat the Sixers for the 10th straight time in the regular season

Notes: Sixers C Spencer Hawes (Achilles) sat out but will play against the Bulls on Saturday. ... The Heat are 3-0 vs. the Sixers this season. ... The 78 points match the fewest allowed by the Heat this season.

Notebook: Heat 84, Sixers 78

Posted Friday March 16, 2012 10:38PM

By Andy Jasner, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: LeBron James scored 29 points to leading five Miami Heat players in double figures in an 84-78 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Dwyane Wade scored 12 points while Chris Bosh, Mario Chalmers and Udonis Haslem had 10 each. The Heat (32-11) snapped a four-game road losing streak and won for the 10th consecutive time in the regular season over the Sixers.

Evan Turner paced the Sixers (25-19) with 13 points. Lou Williams scored 12 points and Andre Iguodala had 11. The Sixers fell behind by 27 at halftime and closed within four down the stretch.

QUOTABLE: "We're capable but we have to be efficient and play with a sense of urgency."
-- Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra on building a 27-point lead and hanging on for the win.

THE STAT: The Heat are 14-0 this season when holding the opposition below 90 points.

TURNING POINT: The Heat outscored Philadelphia 26-12 in the second half and rolled to a 57-30 lead at halftime. Just like that, a 13-point advantage turned into 27. It was enough of a cushion to hold off the hard-charging Sixers down the stretch.

HOT: James was 12-for-20 from the field, including some difficult jumpers with defenders draped all over him.

NOT: Williams misfired on 11 of his 15 shots and never quite found his rhythm. Jrue Holiday was also 3-for-16.

QUOTABLE II: "We'll learn from our mistakes. But that won't take away from being on the road and getting a win against a very good team."
-- James.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: James (29 points, eight assists, seven rebounds) and Wade (12 points, 11 rebounds, six assists) were stellar as usual for the Heat.

INSIDE THE ARENA: There was a typical boisterous sellout crowd (20,396) for the Heat-Sixers matchup Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Co-owners Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith attended the game along with son Jaden and daughter Willow. Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy also was in attendance.

QUOTABLE III: "It's very frustrating to have two different halves in the first half and the second half. It's disappointing that we can't play like that the whole game."
-- Sixers forward Elton Brand on the team's strong second half in the six-point loss.

GOOD MOVE: The Heat were very aggressive and took advantage of the paint in the first half. They built enough of a lead to pull out a tough win in the end.

BAD MOVE: Iguodala could be more forceful on the offensive end. Sometimes, he tends to defer to his teammates a little too much. It was evident throughout the game.

ROOKIE WATCH: Heat guard Norris Cole scored two points while guard Terrel Harris didn't play. For the Sixers, Nikola Vucevic started at center and had nine points and four rebounds while forward Lavoy Allen scored four points and grabbed four rebounds.

NOTABLE: The Heat recorded at least one blocked shot for a franchise-best 335th straight game, dating to Jan. 16, 2008. ... Philadelphia center Spencer Hawes was inactive. Hawes missed 28 games in two separate stints with a strained left Achilles but returned to play nearly 20 minutes in a 111-94 loss at Indiana two nights ago. ... Sixers swingman Sam Young, who was acquired before Thursday's trade deadline from Memphis, was active and scored one point in a short span of 1:42. ... The Sixers shot just 25 percent in the first half -- 11-for-44. ... Wade registered his fourth double-double this season. ... In three games against the Sixers this season, James is averaging 25.3 points on 60 percent shooting. ... Iguodala grabbed 10 rebounds and wound up with his seventh double-double of the season.

NEXT: For the Heat, Sunday vs. Orlando, Tuesday vs. Phoenix, Friday @ Detroit. For the Sixers, Saturday @ Chicago, Monday @ Charlotte, Wednesday vs. New York.

• Heat: Miller
• 76ers: Hawes

• Heat: --
• 76ers: --

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
• Officials: #24 Mike Callahan, #36 David Jones, #50 Olandis Poole
• Attendance: 20396
• Duration: 2:21