The Miami HEAT defeated the Denver Nuggets 108-91 Friday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Dwyane Wade led the way for the HEAT with 22 points and four assists.
Impact Performance of the Night: The backcourt duo of Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic played very well against the Nuggets. Wade got hot in the second quarter and connected on a few mid-range jumpers that continued Miami’s momentum after a nice run. As the game wore on, Wade continued to take good shots and also had a gorgeous drive late in regulation. Wade led the team with 22 points on 50 percent shooting and also dished out four assists.
Dragic, meanwhile, pushed tempo and had plenty of difficult finishes on Friday night. He showcased his blazing speed and often went with his crafty spin move in the post to create space against taller defenders. Dragic finished with 18 points, eight boards and five assists.
The Deciding Run: The HEAT went on a 10-3 run to take a 97-81 lead with 4:05 left in the game. Miami picked up its defense and stifled Denver during the run.
Earlier, the HEAT went on a 20-3 run to go up 34-26 with 8:15 to go in the second quarter. Michael Beasley was very active throughout the run and led the charge.
Play of the Game: With 6:35 left in the third quarter, Hassan Whiteside came up with a steal off the in-bounds pass. He saw his opportunity in the open court and took it all the way for the one-handed, rock-the-cradle stuff that put Miami up 73-62.
Another nice play came with 11:41 left in the second quarter when Goran Dragic drove to his left after Chris Andersen set him a screen. Dragic then lofted up a lob for Michael Beasley, who threw it down with one hand to put Miami up 24-23.
Lastly, with 3:40 to go in the second quarter, Michael Beasley swiped an errant pass from Ty Lawson. Luol Deng got the ball and threw it up ahead to Dwyane Wade, who took it all the way home for the one-handed jam that put the HEAT up 51-36.
Efficiency Rating: Offensive Efficiency: 113.3; Defensive Efficiency: 97.5
Trend to Watch: In his third stint with the HEAT, Michael Beasley has certainly made the most of his opportunity. Friday night was no different. Beasley provided a spark for Miami in the second quarter and had a great all-around performance. He made some smart decisions with the ball and played pretty good defense on the other end. Beasley displayed patience often and set up his teammates pretty well. On one play in particular, he rifled a pass inside to Hassan Whiteside for an easy finish late in the third quarter. In all, Beasley finished with nine points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
The Takeaway: It was great to see the HEAT take a lead into halftime and maintain it for the rest of the game. The Nuggets got pretty close in the third quarter, but Miami made sure a comeback wasn’t in the cards. The HEAT’s defense picked it up in the fourth quarter, as they held Denver to just 23.8 percent shooting in the period. Beasley was a big part of that, as was Hassan Whiteside.
Offensively, Luol Deng and Henry Walker did damage from downtown to support Wade and Dragic. Deng picked up where he left off Wednesday night and went 3-of-5 from distance and finished the game with 15 points. Walker, meanwhile, also hit 3-of-5 from downtown and had nine points on the night.
Game Highlights: