After a nip-and-tuck first half, the HEAT were able to seize control in the third quarter and defeat the Pacers 109-100 Thursday afternoon at The Field House in Orlando to take a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference First Round.
In addition to playing stout defense, Miami also set a postseason franchise record with 18 treys, so let’s take a look at a few of them below.
1. Dragić At It Again
There’s just something about Dragić in crunch time, eh?
Much like in Game 1, the Dragon picked up some steam in the second half and helped Miami gain separation from Indy.
After scoring eight points in the third, he led the HEAT with eight more in the fourth, including this catch-and-shoot three that set the team record:
(Also note the great pass by Tyler Herro and the reaction by Dragić afterwards.)
That wasn’t all, though, as the Slovenian also defended Malcolm Brogdon very well and made his life miserable.
When it was all said and done, Dragić amassed 20 points on 9-of-18 shooting, a team-high six assists (tied with Jimmy Butler) and three rebounds.
2. Robinson Ties a HEAT Record
As usual, Duncan Robinson had flames emitting from his right hand in this one.
Not only did he score the HEAT’s first nine points of the game, but he also hit his first six shots en route to a historic performance.
In fact, he tied Mike Miller and Damon Jones for the most threes in a playoff game in franchise history with seven.
Perhaps no trey was as impressive as this one off the dribble late in the third:
On the flip side of the ball, Robinson fared much better on switches than in Game 1 and fronted Myles Turner well on a couple possessions.
In all, the 26-year-old Robinson recorded a game-high 24 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and a perfect 3-of-3 from the line, two rebounds, two assists and a steal.
3. Jimmy Stays Strong
Once again, Jimmy Butler emptied the tank on both ends and brought the competitive fire needed in the postseason.
Naturally, that entailed great passes off the dribble, threes and a drawn charge.
That’s Jimmy for ya.
Butler finished with 18 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field, including 2-of-3 from distance, and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe, seven rebounds, a team-high six assists (tied with Dragić), a team-high two steals (tied with Bam Adebayo) and a plus-12 rating.
Other Takeaways:
-Andre Iguodala continued to do all the little things for Miami and showed active hands throughout the contest.
And while he disrupted a lot of Indy’s possessions with deflections and strips, this block in transition on Edmond Sumner was ridiculous:
I mean, just look at all the ground he covered.
Iguodala’s defensive prowess also held true against his primary cover in Victor Oladipo.
The 36-year-old vet ended up with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting, a team-high two blocks, two rebounds, one assist and one steal.
-Although Adebayo got into some foul trouble, he still made an impact by setting great screens for his teammates and opening everything up for the offense.
As such, he tallied a game-high plus-19 rating to go along with seven points on 3-of-7 shooting, five boards, four assists, a team-high two steals (tied with Butler) and a block.
Game Note:
-Kyle Alexander, KZ Okpala (Personal Reasons), Chris Silva and Gabe Vincent (Right Shoulder Sprain) were inactive.
Looking Ahead:
-Game 3 will be on Saturday at 3:30PM. You can catch the action on FOX Sports Sun and TNT.