Raptors-Heat Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSON
Posted Jan 23 2013 12:13AM

The Miami Heat own the Eastern Conference's best record, but are still looking to shore up one glaring weakness - rebounding.

They hope a new face can help make an impact beginning Wednesday night as they try to continue their dominance over the visiting Toronto Raptors.

The Heat (26-12) haven't played since Thursday when they capped a 10-day, six-game road trip with a 99-90 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. They started the trek with losses to Indiana and Portland but closed by winning three of four.

"It was good for our team to kind of get a rest," said Dwyane Wade, whose scoring average of 20.1 ranks 10th. "We are one of the oldest teams in the league. (It's good) for guys to kind of mentally and physically get away from the grind."

The Heat, winners of 16 of 19 at home, didn't get any younger with Sunday's signing of 34-year-old Chris Andersen to a 10-day contract, but hope the move can improve a club that averages a league-worst 38.8 rebounds.

Andersen, who hasn't appeared in a game since last March with Denver, never played more than 22 minutes per game in his career, but averages 14.0 rebounds and 4.3 blocked shots per 48 minutes.

"Typically, you're not able to get a player of his caliber at this time of year," Erik Spoelstra said. "But three years ago he was the best in the game coming off the bench at his position, as a shot-blocker and a rebounder. We've always liked him."

Miami has made up for its rebounding deficiencies by shooting 48.8 percent from the floor - a franchise-best mark - while also being the NBA's third-most accurate 3-point shooting team (38.7 percent).

LeBron James is shooting 55.0 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from beyond the arc, both career bests. He remains one of two players in the league, along with Russell Westbrook, in the top 10 in both scoring (26.3) and assists (7.0)

"We closed out the trip the right way, and we want to build from it," said James, who had 39 points and eight assists against the Lakers.

The Raptors snapped a four-game losing streak with a 108-103 win against the Lakers on Sunday as Jose Calderon scored 22 and Landry Fields added a season-high 18. Toronto (15-26) had won 10 of 13 before the skid, which included blown leads of 19 and 20 points in losses to Philadelphia and Milwaukee.

"It's still tough to put it all the way behind us because if we had won the games we were supposed to, it would be a totally different situation," said DeMar DeRozan, who leads the team in scoring (17.3) and averaged 21.7 in three losses to Miami last season.

The Heat have won eight straight in the series by an average of 12.2 points, and the last six meetings in Miami. James is averaging 32.0 points in his last three home games against the Raptors.

Toronto is also still trying to overcome the losses of Andrea Bargnani (16.0 ppg) and Jonas Valanciunas (7.8 ppg). Bargnani has been out since Dec. 12 with a sore right elbow, though coach Dwane Casey said he's resumed working with a basketball. Valanciunas, who has missed 13 games with a broken finger on his right hand, is lifting weights.

Wade, James carry Heat past Raptors in OT, 123-116

By TIM REYNOLDS
Posted Jan 23 2013 11:53PM

MIAMI (AP) After sitting around for nearly a week, the Miami Heat expected to be a little less than razor-sharp.

It took an extra session, but the reigning NBA champions eventually found their groove.

Dwyane Wade scored 35 points, LeBron James got his 34th career triple-double and the Heat rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors 123-116 in overtime on Wednesday.

"It was typical for a team to come off a long road trip, have days off and try to get back in a groove, especially versus a team that offensively is one of the top 10 in the league in offense and scoring the ball," Wade said. "It took us time to get our legs into it and get our rotations down, but as the game went on we were able to do that."

James finished with 31 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for Miami, getting the last board on Toronto's final shot of the night. Wade added seven assists, including the one that set up Ray Allen for the 3-pointer that clinched the win with 59.3 seconds left in overtime.

Allen scored 18, Mario Chalmers scored 14 and Chris Bosh had a 12-point, 12-rebound night for Miami. The Heat finished overtime on a 13-2 run, erasing a four-point hole in their first game in six nights.

"Just tried to keep wearing on them," James said. "We knew it was going to take a little while to get the engines back started, but we got enough stops in the second half to give ourselves a chance to win."

Alan Anderson scored 20 points for Toronto, leading seven Raptors in double figures. Jose Calderon scored 17, Terrence Ross had 16, and Amir Johnson finished with 15 points.

Miami outrebounded Toronto 53-28, with Udonis Haslem also grabbing 10 rebounds for the Heat.

"I cannot fault our guys' effort," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "They fought, they scrapped, they played with their hearts and they took one of the best teams in the NBA to the limit. That's what I said before the game. This game is about respect. This game's about going out there and not letting teams think they're going to come out and get their numbers against you. And our guys fought."

Wade and Allen each had six points in overtime for Miami, which outscored Toronto 14-7 in the extra session. James had five rebounds in the final 5 minutes - after getting five in all of regulation.

The path to overtime was frantic, with neither team leading by more than three in the final 6:51 of the fourth quarter.

Calderon made a 3-pointer with 1:51 left to give Toronto a 105-103 lead; Bosh answered with a jumper to tie it. So Calderon connected on another 3, only to have that one rebutted by a 3-pointer by James, knotting the game once again.

And for good measure, after DeMar DeRozan went 1 for 2 from the line to put the Raptors up by one, Bosh followed with a 1 for 2 from the stripe to tie the game for the 13th time.

DeRozan missed a wild layup with 19 seconds left, and James' 20-footer at the buzzer bounced off the back iron - sending it to overtime.

"We've been competing against everybody," Calderon said. "We're playing much better. We're sharing the ball. We can compete against everybody. We've got to compete every night. We've still got a couple guys out with injuries, but we'll be all right. When we play as a team, we're good. We don't have LeBron James."

Toronto led 54-39 late in the second after a 19-9 run. Kyle Lowry had seven points during the burst, Anderson added six - and both made four-point plays during the stretch.

But Miami closed to 57-50 by intermission, after a heads-up final few seconds from Shane Battier.

He made a 3-pointer late in the half, then stole Toronto's inbounds pass to give Miami a possession that led to a free throw by Bosh. Battier then contested Lowry's layup at the buzzer, forcing a miss before the break.

Toronto led by as many as 10 in the third, before the Heat got hot. Miami scored 30 points in the final 7:55 of the quarter - with Wade going 6 for 7 in the period, and the Heat outrebounding Toronto 13-3.

Still, it only added up to an 88-84 Heat lead entering the fourth.

"The biggest thing is winning," James said. "That's what it's all about."

NOTES: James passed Tom Chambers for 37th on the league's career scoring list. ... James had 10 points in the first quarter, the fifth straight game where the NBA's reigning MVP has reached double-digits in the opening period. It's the third time he's had such a streak in his career, with a run of six consecutive games in 2010 his longest. ... Toronto had no turnovers in the game's first 22 minutes. ... One of the loudest cheers in the first half came when the halftime score of the Miami-Duke game - the Hurricanes led 42-19 in a stunner at that point, in a game going on a few miles south in Coral Gables - was displayed on the scoreboards. Miami went on to a 90-63 victory.

Notebook: Heat 123, Raptors 116 (OT)

Zachary Paul, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Jan 23, 2013 11:23 PM - Updated Wed Jan 23, 2013 11:23 PM

THE FACTS: The Miami Heat defeated the Toronto Raptors 123-116 in overtime Wednesday at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Dwyane Wade scored a season-high 35 points, including eight in overtime. It was Wade who sparked a 13-0 run in the extra session after the Raptors had built a four-point lead. His night overshadowed a triple-double by LeBron James, who finished with 31 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.

The Raptors led by as many as 15 in the first half before losing the lead and rallying to force overtime. But it was too much. Despite allowing 14 3-pointers, the Heat's combination of James, Wade, Chris Bosh and Ray Allen were more than enough to compensate.

Allen scored 18 points off the bench while Bosh contributed 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Raptors guard Allen Anderson led seven players in double figures with 20 points.

QUOTABLE: "You're talking about the elite offensive players in the world, not the league, the world. I thought our guys battled, scratched and tried to keep up. Man-for-man, it's hard for us to match us with them. We've got to them different looks and we gave up something, which was open shots."
-- Raptors coach Dwane Casey on James and Wade.

THE STAT: The Heat made 14-for-18 field goals on the way to a 38-point third quarter.

TURNING POINT: Trailing 73-63, the Heat went on a 13-0 run midway through the third quarter to get back in the game before eventually pulling it out in overtime.

HOT: The fourth quarter and overtime belonged to Wade. Not only was effective on offense, he was also instrumental on defense. He finished with a LeBron-like stat line, recording seven assists and five rebounds.

NOT: After taking a 114-110 lead in overtime, the Raptors missed six straight shots. Kyle Lowry stopped the streak with a layup but by then the Heat had already went on a 13-0 run.

GOOD MOVE: The Heat got back into the game because of their activity on the glass in the third quarter, particularly Udonis Haslem and Bosh. It was the most active both have been in the same game since rebounding became an issue a month ago.

BAD MOVE: At some point, the Raptors lost track of Wade and James in the third quarter. The biggest problem was allowing them too many high-percentage shots, with Wade and James combining to shoot 25-for-42 from the field.

NOTABLE: The Heat announced they will visit the White House Monday to commemorate last year's championship ... Bosh had his first double-digit rebound game since grabbing 16 against the Bucks Dec. 29 ...James has 34 career triple-doubles.

UP NEXT: For the Heat, Friday vs. Detroit, Sunday @ Boston, Wednesday @ Brooklyn. For the Raptors, Thursday @ Orlando, Saturday vs. Cleveland, Monday vs. Golden State.

• Raptors: Bargnani, Valanciunas
• Heat: Pittman, Varnado

• Raptors: --
• Heat: Cole

• Lead Changes: 12
• Times Tied: 13

• Arena: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
• Officials: #15 Bennett Salvatore, #76 Steven Anderson, #42 Eric Lewis
• Attendance: 20002
• Duration: 2:38