Wizards-Heat Preview

By NOEY KUPCHAN
Posted Jan 05 2013 9:58PM

While the Eastern Conference-leading Miami Heat appear poised to make a run at a second consecutive title, their rebounding efforts haven't resembled those of a championship caliber club.

Coming off arguably their most disappointing rebounding display of the season, the Heat will surely be looking to control the glass Sunday against the NBA-worst Washington Wizards.

Miami (22-9), which is shooting a league-high 49.1 percent and among the NBA leaders with 103.1 points per game, has thrived in almost every facet aside from rebounding. The Heat rank 29th in the league with 38.7 boards per game, an issue that played a huge role in Friday's 96-89 loss to visiting Chicago.

Miami was outrebounded 48-28 and outscored 20-7 in second-chance points while allowing 19 offensive boards.

"This is something that we're going to fix," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We're improving in so many other areas, particularly offensively. Rebounding's the area that has to take the priority right now.

"We have enough guys who are capable of it. Individually guys are capable of doing their job better, either block out or chase down rebounds. We need to have some career years from guys on the glass."

LeBron James, who had 30 points Friday, is averaging a career-high 8.5 rebounds but isn't getting much help. Chris Bosh is pulling down 7.6 per game - his lowest mark since posting 7.4 as a rookie in 2003-04 - and Udonis Haslem is averaging a career-low 4.9

"We've got to go out and do it," said James, averaging 32.7 points over his last three games. "If the ball is in your region, try to go up and get it. If not, box out your guy and let somebody else go get it."

Miami had surprisingly dropped three straight in this series - including a 105-101 road loss Dec. 4 - before cruising to a 102-72 home win 11 days later thanks in part to winning the rebounding battle 43-40.

"On Sunday we must win," Bosh said, "and we must rebound to win."

The Heat are 15-3 at home and haven't dropped back-to-back games on their own court since a four-game slide Feb. 27-March 8, 2011. That doesn't bode well for a Wizards team that's gone 1-14 on the road, dropping its last six there by an average of 15.5 points.

Washington (4-27) visits South Beach looking to avoid a fifth consecutive defeat overall after suffering a heartbreaking 115-113 double-overtime loss to Brooklyn on Friday. Rookie Bradley Beal had a season-high 24 points while Jordan Crawford scored 23 for the Wizards, who led by eight with just over a minute remaining in the first overtime before coming up short on Joe Johnson's jumper with 0.7 seconds left in the second OT.

"We gotta close that one out in order for us to be the team we want to be," said Garrett Temple, who dished out a career-high 11 assists.

Friday's result was just the latest chapter in what's been another frustrating season for Washington, which has 12 defeats by six points or fewer.

"How many times have we been here? I've lost count," said coach Randy Wittman, whose team was outrebounded 54-41 on Friday. "We've go to keep striving to find the magic of closing a game out and having guys step up."

Though John Wall (left knee), A.J. Price (broken right hand) and Trevor Booker (right knee) are still working their way back from injury, Trevor Ariza could return Sunday. The nine-year veteran has missed the last 16 games since straining his left calf against Miami on Dec. 4.

James leads Heat past woeful Wizards 99-71

By STEVEN WINE
Posted Jan 06 2013 9:48PM

MIAMI (AP) The Miami Heat hit the boards from the start and pulled away at the end.

Chastened by a rare home defeat, Miami had a rebounding advantage for a change Sunday and scored the final 21 points to beat the woeful Washington Wizards 99-71.

The Heat were coming off only their third home loss of the season Friday against Chicago. They allowed the Bulls 20 second-chance points, but Washington totaled just four.

Miami, beaten on the boards by a total of 38 rebounds over the previous three games, this time enjoyed a 50-39 advantage. Udonis Haslem had 12 rebounds and Chris Bosh added nine.

"There were some better in-traffic battles, guys going up and trying to get it with two hands, guys getting up off the ground," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "That disposition to rebound was better. It's an effort thing."

The game matched the teams with the best and worst records in the Eastern Conference, and in the late going it looked like it. Miami scored the final 21 points and held Washington scoreless over the last 7:07.

"The defense came alive," LeBron James said. "We understand that if we want to win, ultimately we have to defend."

James scored 24 points, extending his streaks of scoring at least 20 to 32 consecutive games this season, and 53 in a row including last year's playoff run.

James launched into a long jump in dismay when his dunk was waved off because of a Wizards foul. He gave the Heat a scare when he tweaked his left ankle and limped away from a scrum after drawing a foul, but he stayed in the game.

And there was no slackening in his scoring pace. He shot 9 for 17 and had seven assists.

The Wizards (4-28), last in the NBA in points and shooting, clanked a succession of open shots and hit 36 only percent. They lost their fifth game in a row and fell to 0-13 on the road against Eastern Conference teams.

Miami improved to 16-3 at home and now embarks on a six-game trip.

"We're going to see where we're at," Bosh said. "Trips are always a test."

As the Heat center, Bosh became a focus of criticism for their poor work on the boards. In response, he said, he kept track of his rebound total during the game.

"I'm just counting them so everybody will get off my back," he said with a chuckle. "It's nine today. OK. Now I need to get nine the next game - or maybe even 10.

"The only way we can do a better job is if each guy challenges himself a little more, and I challenged myself tonight."

Spoelstra said he noticed a difference in Bosh, who sparked a fast start by Miami.

"I just like to see him get off the floor," Spoelstra said. "He probably had more jumps in this game than he has had in a lot of them. He was active. It felt like he was a 7-foot player, which he is."

Bosh finished with 17 points and a season-high four blocks. Ray Allen scored 20 off the bench and helped Miami pull away in the fourth quarter.

The Heat made their first seven shots to go ahead 15-6. The Wizards made several runs but never managed to pull even.

"Every time we came back, we got lazy," center Kevin Seraphin said. "We have to learn that every time we come back, we have to keep going to get stops."

The Wizards cut the margin to 78-71 midway through the fourth quarter but didn't score again, missing their final eight shots.

Allen made two 3-pointers and a three-point play down the stretch for the Heat. He finished 8 for 12.

"When you're not scoring and they're running, we're not making them take the ball out of bounds," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "That makes a difference."

Jordan Crawford, who leads Washington in scoring this season, went 1 for 7 and was held to two points. Seraphin led the Wizards with 14 points off the bench.

NOTES: The crowd included New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez, seated in the front row at midcourt next to Heat owner Micky Arison. ... The Heat begin their trip Tuesday at Indiana, where they're 9-35. ... The Heat had their best start shooting since Dec. 27, 2009 against the Pacers, when they made their first eight shots. ... Even with the loss, the Wizards are 3-3 against Miami over the past two seasons. ... Billy the Marlin drew scattered boos when he made an appearance to help celebrate Heat mascot Burnie's birthday. Fans are unhappy about the team's recent payroll purge.

Notebook: Heat 99, Wizards 71

Zachary Paul, for NBA.com
Posted Sun Jan 06, 2013 10:07 PM - Updated Sun Jan 06, 2013 10:07 PM

THE FACTS: The Miami Heat defeated the Washington Wizards 99-71 Sunday at AmericanAirlines Arena.

LeBron James led the Heat 24 points and seven assists as they rebounded from Friday's loss to the Chicago Bulls. After being out-rebounded badly by the Bulls, the Heat responded by winning the rebounding battle 40-29. Udonis Haslem finished with a season-high 12 rebounds.

The Heat were ahead most of the game, but took control with midway through the fourth quarter. They closed with a 21-0 run, holding the Wizards scoreless the final 7:07.

Guard Ray Allen finished with 20 points off the bench, hitting 3 of 4 from 3-point range. Center Chris Bosh had 17 points and nine rebounds while Dwyane Wade added 14 points.

Reserve Kevin Seraphin led the Wizards with 14 points.

QUOTABLE: "That was a good bounce-back game. I really don't believe the score was indicative of how competitive it was. Washington was keeping it pretty tight for a while but for the most part, coming off our last game, it's good to bounce back with this."
-- Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.

THE STAT: The Heat held the Wizards to 35 percent shooting.

TURNING POINT: The Heat closed with a 21-0 run, holding the Wizards scoreless the final 7:07.

QUOTABLE II: "(Rebounding) is a major emphasis every night. Udonis played 28 minutes. He was the rebounder he's always been, getting 12 rebounds. Everyone else did their job. The biggest thing was coming back. Guys did a great job of boxing out. That enabled us to be able to most of the game stay (ahead) 10, eight until we were able to put it away."
-- Wade on the Heat's rebounding.

HOT: Bosh provided the offensive spark for the Heat. While his scoring was a plus, he was most beneficial on the glass. This was the most active Bosh had been as a rebounder in the past three games.

NOT: Nene still continues to work his way back into the lineup after missing much of the season with a foot injury. He has played eight games, but has struggled since returning. He finished just 1 of 6 from the field.

GOOD MOVE: After emphasizing rebounding the past few days, the Heat finally executed it. Bosh and Haslem, who had both struggled of late, turned in solid performances. Miami also got the collective effort it has coveted, with Mike Miller and Mario Chalmers contributing.

BAD MOVE: The Wizards got next to nothing from their starting backcourt of Garrett Temple and Bradley Beal. They started by missing 13 of their first 16 shots. Although they defended well, more offense was needed from them to keep pace with the Heat.

NOTABLE: James has scored at least 20 points in 37 straight regular season games ... Wizards John Wall (knee) traveled with the team but isn't expected to return for a few weeks ...The Heat improved to 17-1 when they take a lead into the fourth quarter.

UP NEXT: For the Heat, Tuesday @ Pacers, Thursday @ Trail Blazers, Saturday @ Kings. For the Wizards, Monday vs. Thunder, Saturday vs. Hawks, Jan. 14 vs. Magic.

• Wizards: Booker, Wall
• Heat: Pittman

• Wizards: --
• Heat: --

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 1

• Arena: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
• Officials: #22 Bill Spooner, #29 Mark Lindsay, #40 Leon Wood
• Attendance: 20228
• Duration: 1:59