Wade turns back the clock in Heat win
36-year-old guard scores 28 to help end 76ers’ winning streak
PHILADELPHIA — Dwyane Wade snuffed out one 76ers’ rally by popping a 16-foot fadeaway with the shot clock ticking down. Wade made a halfhearted attempt at reaching his hand out toward a fallen defender before he scooted on his way.
Wade was up, the Sixers were down and suddenly, a series.
The Heat had to have this one — a brooding Joel Embiid is angling for a comeback.
Wade turned in a vintage performance, scoring 28 points to end the 76ers’ 17-game winning streak and lead the Miami Heat to a 113-103 Game 2 win over Philadelphia on Monday night and even the first-round playoff series.
“It’s just in my DNA,” Wade said. “I love the stage.”
The 36-year-old flashed the form of a three-time NBA champion with the Heat, not the journeyman who bounced around the last two seasons with forgettable stints in Chicago and Cleveland.
Wade made 11 of 17 shots and put on a show in the second quarter and put it away in the fourth.
“I saw moments,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That’s what defines Dwyane Wade.”
The 76ers could soon get their defining Process moment from Embiid.
The Sixers sorely needed Embiid, their All-Star center out with a broken orbital bone, to settle them as they fell in a quick a 16-point hole.
The Sixers lost for the first time since March 13
to Indiana. They won 16 straight to end the regular season and the first game of the playoffs and played their 10th straight game without Embiid.
“You need Joel Embiid,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said.
Embiid went on Instagram after the game and wrote, “sick and tired of being babied.”
Pack the black mask for Miami.
“Joel is a superstar. Of course we’re missing him offensively, defensively,” Sixers forward Dario Saric said. “He’s a guy who wants to play all the time. I can’t wait for Joel to come back and help us because we’re a better team with him.”
Even without Embiid, the Sixers trimmed the lead to two points late in the fourth.
Philly fans were going wild and suddenly the home-court edge that had made the Sixers unbeatable for a month seemed like it would perk the team back up for one more notch on the winning streak. Not so fast. Ersan Ilyasova made a tip shot to close to 98-96 but Wade answered and stripped Saric and finished on the other end with a basket that steadied the Heat.
The series shifts to Miami for Game 3 on Thursday.
Wade’s play resembled his glory days at times and he carried the Heat in a sensational second quarter that was the difference. He pump-faked his way to 15 points in the quarter — impressive enough. He outscored the potent Sixers by two points.
Wade made his first seven shots of the game and passed Larry Bird for 10th on the NBA’s career postseason scoring list.
“I play the game for these moments,” Wade said.
After a Game 1 victory where they couldn’t miss, the Sixers couldn’t make a big bucket in the first half. The Sixers made a team playoff-record 18 3s in Game 1 and missed a whopping 16 of 18 3s in the first half.
The Heat slowed the game down — exactly the kind of style where the Sixers needed Embiid in the middle — and used a collective of defenders on Ben Simmons that rattled the rookie early.
The passing-and-pushing offense that got the Sixers to the No. 3 seed in the East failed them for the first time since early March. WARRIORS 116, SPURS 101: In Oakland, Calif., Kevin Durant sparked a decisive third-quarter run on the way to 32 points, Klay Thompson added 31 points and five assists in another superb playoff performance and Golden State rallied in the second half to beat San Antonio for a 2-0 lead in their first-round series.
As Stephen Curry remains out likely for the entire series nursing a sprained left knee, the defending champions used all the offensive power they had to take both home games in the best-of-seven series. Wearing a dark checkered sport coat, Curry was all smiles watching a lopsided win without him.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 34 for the Spurs.
Game 3 is Thursday as the series shifts to San Antonio.
WARRIORS 116, SPURS 101 SAN ANTONIO (101) Da.Green 0-3 0-0 0, Gay 6-12 0-0 12, Aldridge 11-21 12-12 34, Murray 2-4 0-0 4, Mills 7-16 4-4 21, Anderson 0-2 1-2 1, Bertans 1-7 2-4 5, Gasol 3-5 6-6 12, White 0-0 0-0 0, Parker 1-3 0-0 2, Forbes 0-3 0-0 0, Ginobili 4-9 2-2 10. Totals 35-85 27-30 101. GOLDEN STATE (116) Durant 10-19 9-10 32, Dr.Green 2-9 4-4 9, McGee 5-7 0-0 10, Iguodala 5-7 0-0 14, Thompson 12-20 2-2 31, Bell 0-0 0-0 0, Looney 1-2 0-0 2, West 3-3 4-4 10, Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Cook 2-6 0-0 6, Livingston 1-4 0-0 2, Young 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 41-78 19-20 116.
San Antonio 25 28 22 26—101 Golden State 23 24 33 36—116 3-Point Goals—San Antonio 4-28 (Mills 3-9, Bertans 1-6, Parker 0-1, Forbes 0-1, Anderson 0-2, Gay 0-3, Ginobili 0-3, Da.Green 0-3), Golden State 15-31 (Thompson 5-8, Iguodala 4-5, Durant 3-9, Cook 2-4, Dr.Green 1-4, Young 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—San Antonio 35 (Aldridge 12), Golden State 39 (McGee, Iguodala 7). Assists—San Antonio 16 (Gay, Ginobili, Mills, Gasol, Aldridge 3), Golden State 32 (Dr.Green, Durant 6). Total Fouls— San Antonio 21, Golden State 24. A—19,596 (19,596). HEAT 113, 76ERS 103 MIAMI (113) Richardson 5-12 3-3 14, J.Johnson 7-7 2-3 18, Whiteside 1-2 2-2 4, Dragic 8-14 3-4 20, T.Johnson 1-4 2-2 5, Winslow 1-5 0-0 2, Olynyk 3-8 4-4 11, Adebayo 0-4 0-2 0, McGruder 0-0 0-0 0, Ellington 3-10 2-2 11, Wade 11-16 6-8 28. Totals 40-82 24-30 113. PHILADELPHIA (103) Covington 3-13 0-0 7, Saric 8-21 4-4 23, Ilyasova 7-10 0-1 14, Simmons 10-17 4-6 24, Redick 4-13 2-4 11, Holmes 0-0 0-0 0, A.Johnson 3-5 0-0 6, McConnell 0-1 2-2 2, Fultz 0-3 0-0 0, Belinelli 5-13 4-5 16. Totals 40-96 16-22 103. Miami 22 34 30 27—113 Philadelphia 29 13 33 28—103
3-Point Goals—Miami 9-25 (Ellington 3-8, J.Johnson 2-2, T.Johnson 1-1, Olynyk 1-2, Dragic 1-3, Richardson 1-5, Wade 0-1, Adebayo 0-1, Winslow 0-2), Philadelphia 7-36 (Saric 3-10, Belinelli 2-8, Redick 1-7, Covington 1-9, Ilyasova 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Miami 46 (J.Johnson, Wade 7), Philadelphia 49 (Ilyasova 11). Assists—Miami 23 (Olynyk 6), Philadelphia 22 (Simmons 8). Total Fouls—Miami 27, Philadelphia 26. A—20,753 (21,600).