Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Game report.
Goran Dragic scores 20 points; Waiters notches 17
MIAMI — And, still, eight can’t be enough.
Not with so much ground yet to cover in this fascinating climb from the bottom of the Eastern Conference by the Miami Heat.
But eight it is, an eighth consecutive victory achieved with Monday night’s 104-96 decision over the Brooklyn Nets at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Winning like this hasn’t been sustained by the Heat since LeBron James called South Florida home. And more is needed, with the Heat now still 19-30.
Like the winning streak itself, this was a wild ride, with a double-digit deficit against the league-worst Nets for the second time in less than a week.
As much as anything, this one showed the depth of possibilities of the Heat roster.
There were 20 points from Goran Dragic and 19 from Dion Waiters. There were 17 from James Johnson, whose flying tip dunk in the final minute clinched it.
There also were 12 points and nine rebounds from Hassan Whiteside, and 13 points from Rodney McGruder, with those points coming when needed most.
And so the winning continues, heading into Wednesday’s game against the visiting Atlanta Hawks.
Both Whiteside and Dragic were saddled with their fourth fouls by the midpoint of the fourth quarter. Coach Erik Spoelstra at that point left Whiteside on the court, buying time with Dragic on the bench.
Whiteside then was forced out with his fifth foul with 5 minutes to play, when Dragic returned, with the Nets utilizing that possession to close within 95-90.
Willie Reed, as he had done a week earlier in Brooklyn, then stepped in and up for the Heat, scoring inside with 3:02 to play for a 97-90 Heat lead.
The Nets then closed within 97-93 with 2 minutes to play on a hook shot by Trevor Booker, before Dragic drew a shooting foul with 1:30 to play and converted both foul shots for a 99-93 Heat lead.
And then James Johnson wrapped his arms around the ball for a flying follow-up tip-dunk with 56.8 seconds to play and that was that.
The Heat opened the second half with an 11-2 run to push to a 13-point lead early in the third. The Nets then rallied before the Heat went into the fourth up 84-77, behind eight points in the third from James Johnson.
The Heat stood 11 of 23 on 3-pointers through the first three periods.
The Heat went down 11 midway through the second period, before storming back with a 17-0 run late in quarter, sparked by a pair of Waiters’ 3-pointers, to go into the intermission up 56-52.
Waiters had 15 points and six assists in the first half. The Heat were 8 of 18 on 3-pointers in the first half, compared to the Nets’ 1 of 10.
The Heat did not take their first lead until backup center Willie Reed put them up 33-32 early in the second period.
The Heat went into the second period down 32-28, after what was the secondhighest-scoring opening period on the road by the Nets this season.
The Heat’s defense was somewhat compromised when Whiteside was called for his first foul just 16 seconds into the game. Although he played the balance of the period without another, he was outscored 8-2 by Lopez during the period. Whiteside, though, did have three first-half blocked shots.
The Heat had Tyler Johnson back in their rotation, with the reserve guard entering with 2:45 left in the opening period.
Johnson had missed the previous five games with a strained left shoulder.
Johnson’s return precludes the possibility of the Heat using his injury for an additional roster spot, as the Heat have with the sprained left foot that has sidelined Josh Richardson.
Because the Heat already have Chris Bosh, Josh McRoberts and Richardson on their inactive list, another player did not have to be deactivated when Johnson returned.
This was the Nets’ lone visit of the season in the three-game season series.
The Heat defeated the Nets 109-106 last Wednesday at Barclays Center in the first game of the season series, sparked by 24 points from Waiters, who hit a decisive 3-pointer in the closing seconds, on a night Heat center Hassan Whiteside was limited to seven points and one rebound by an ankle sprain.