The Miami HEAT defeated the Utah Jazz 102-100 Sunday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Hassan Whiteside led the way for the HEAT with 23 points and 20 rebounds.
1. Wade Does It All In The Fourth
With the HEAT and Jazz trading blows in the fourth quarter, Dwyane Wade came up big down the stretch like he has time and time again throughout his illustrious career.
After getting fouled by Rudy Gobert on an aggressive drive to the rim, Wade hit two clutch free throws to put Miami ahead for good with 3.2 seconds left.
But even before that point, he showed how much he wanted it.
I mean, just take a look at this:
Crazy, right?
What’s more, Wade continued to share the ball and dished out a season and game-high eight assists against Utah, with none as impressive as this one to Whiteside early in the fourth:
When it was all said and done, the 36-year-old vet tallied 15 points (seven in the fourth quarter), three rebounds, one steal, one block and a game-high plus-21 rating to go along with his aforementioned eight assists.
2. Whiteside Gets Going In The Second Quarter
After having a little bit of a slow start to the game, Whiteside simply dominated the second quarter with 13 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting and eight rebounds.
Just check out these two sequences to see how locked-in he was:
As the game progressed, Whiteside continued to use his strength advantage against the Jazz’s bigs.
In addition to his 23 points and 20 rebounds, the big fella also recorded a team-high three blocks, two assists and a steal.
3. KO Sharp Once Again
Although Kelly Olynyk continued to stretch the floor for Miami, his biggest play of the night came on the defensive end.
That drawn charge by KO on Donovan Mitchell was his seventh of the year, which is the most by any HEAT player this season.
Olynyk finished the contest with 16 points on 4-of-8 shooting, eight rebounds, one assist, one steal and a plus-18 rating.
Other Takeaways:
-Early on, Justise Winslow came through with back-to-back strong plays in the second quarter, as he threw down a one-handed jam and then forced Mitchell into a miss on the other end on the ensuing possession.
Winslow ended up with nine points, five rebounds, two steals, one assist, one block and a plus-14 rating.
Game Notes:
-Rodney McGruder exited the game in the first quarter with a right ankle sprain and did not return.
-Derrick Jones Jr. (Right Hamstring Strain) and Tyler Johnson (Right Hamstring Strain) sat out.
-Goran Dragić (Right Knee Injury), Dion Waiters (Left Ankle Surgery), Duncan Robinson (Sioux Falls Assignment) and Yante Maten (Sioux Falls Assignment) were inactive.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will wrap up their homestand on Tuesday at 7:30 PM against the Orlando Magic. Tickets for that game at AmericanAirlines Arena can be found here.