The Miami HEAT fell to the Golden State Warriors 107-95 Tuesday night at Oracle Arena. Hassan Whiteside led the way for the HEAT with 28 points.
1. 20-20 for Whiteside
Sometimes a competitor just gets in a zone that cannot be broken. For most of Tuesday night’s matchup, Whiteside found himself in that exact situation.
From the opening tip, Whiteside was engaged on both ends against Golden State. How engaged? Well, how does 16 points, 10 rebounds and two assists in the first half sound?
Whiteside simply did it all in the first two quarters, from setting hard screens and finishing at the basket to altering shots at the rim and playing good help-side defense.
One of the big fella’s best plays of the game came late in the first half. With 47 seconds left in the second quarter, he gained control of the ball despite Draymond Green aggressively pursing him from behind. Thanks to Green’s aggressiveness, Whiteside had a free lane to the basket and he proceeded to throw it down with authority.
After a quiet third quarter, Whiteside got going again in the fourth with a bunch of alley-oop jams and a nifty spinning hook shot. As a result, he tallied 12 points and seven rebounds in the final period and did all he could to try and get the win. In short, it was one heck of a performance by the 7-footer.
In addition to his 28 points on 13-of-17 shooting, Whiteside also led the team with 20 rebounds and two blocks.
2. Johnson & Johnson Keep It Up
One of the best scoring duos off the bench did damage once again on Tuesday night, as James Johnson and Tyler Johnson kept Golden State on its toes. In fact, T. Johnson led the team with three 3-pointers to go along with some of his usual finishes inside. Unsurprisingly, J. Johnson assisted T. Johnson on three of the guard’s six made field goals.
Speaking of J. Johnson, the versatile forward often made the right decision with the ball in his hands and dished out six assists on the night. The 29-year-old also pushed the ball in transition and attacked the basket with force.
For a perfect example of that, look no further than his thunderous jam at the end of the first quarter. With less than five seconds remaining in the first, J. Johnson brought the ball down court, utilized a good screen from Willie Reed and threw it down over Steph Curry before the buzzer.
On the flip side of the ball, J. Johnson competed hard against Kevin Durant and Green, while T. Johnson did well against Andre Iguodala and hung tough when guarding Curry.
T. Johnson scored 18 points, grabbed seven boards and dished out three assists. J. Johnson, meanwhile, finished with 14 points and two steals to go along with his six assists.
3. Quick Start for Dragić
While Goran Dragić had a quiet second half, he got Miami started on the right foot, as he took what the defense gave him and mixed up his approach early on.
One of his niftier plays of the evening occurred late in the first quarter. With 4:18 to play in the period, the Slovenian hit Patrick McCaw with the crossover and blew right by him. From there, Dragić got into the paint and converted the tough layup with his off hand over Durant.
In all, the point guard had 17 points, four assists and a steal against the Warriors.
Game Note:
-Josh Richardson (left foot sprain), Justise Winslow (right shoulder surgery) and Josh McRoberts (left foot stress fracture) sat out.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will now head to Milwaukee to face the Bucks on Friday night at 8:00 PM. Miami’s next home game will be on January 17 against the Rockets at 7:30 PM. Tickets for that game can be found here.