The Miami HEAT fell to the Indiana Pacers 96-83 Friday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Chris Bosh led the way for the HEAT with 23 points.
1. Bosh and Dwyane Wade Light It Up
Entering a hostile environment on the road, Miami’s leaders made sure to start the game off quickly. Both Wade and Bosh were very aggressive in the first half, as the duo connected on a number of midrange jumpers. Each tallied 14 points apiece through the first two quarters and was quite active on both ends.
One of Wade’s best plays of the night came in transition. Beno Udrih threw a pin-point bounce pass to Wade cutting down the baseline and the captain threw it down with both hands.
In addition to his barrage from the perimeter, Wade also hit a few floaters and set up his teammates very well. In particular, both he and Hassan Whiteside ran the pick-and-roll to perfection early on in the third quarter.
Bosh, meanwhile, did the majority of his damage from the perimeter and scored eight of his team-leading 23 points in the fourth. He also came up big on the glass and made a few nice plays defensively. In addition to his 23 points, Bosh also nabbed 10 rebounds on the night. Wade, on the other hand, had 20 points, five rebounds and five assists.
2. Luol Deng Back in the Starting Lineup
While Deng returned to action Wednesday night against Charlotte, he did so off the bench. Against the Pacers on Friday, he was back in the starting lineup doing what he does best. Deng made nothing come easy for Paul George and helped limit him to just 7-of-17 shooting. While George still got some shots to fall in the third quarter, they were contested well for the most part. On the flip side, Deng moved around pretty well offensively and tallied seven points and an assist.
As a whole, the HEAT’s transition defense was pretty solid early on. In fact, the Pacers only shot 32.6 percent in the first half. Unfortunately, Indiana got hot later in the game, especially late in the third quarter.
3. Gerald Green Dials Long Distance
Green did a little bit of everything against the Pacers. Early on, he had a nice block on Rodney Stuckey inside and a transition layup after Goran Dragic pushed tempo. Later in the game, Green got hot from downtown and spaced the floor for Miami. He finished the game with 13 points and three rebounds on 50 percent shooting, including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Game Notes:
Wade passed Gail Goodrich for 48th on the NBA’s All-Time scoring list.
Tyler Johnson (shoulder) and Josh McRoberts (rehabilitative recovery) sat out. Jarnell Stokes (assigned to Sioux Falls) was also inactive.