Torrid start quickly fades off
Miami was up 23-5 early, but couldn’t hold off Oklahoma City.
MIAMI — The Miami Heat have one game remaining in the regular season and still could wind up playing any of four opponents in the playoffs, which start this weekend.
Miami started fast Monday, but Oklahoma City chipped away at the 18-point deficit before dominating the Heat in the fourth quarter in a 115-93 victory at AmericanAirlines Arena. Miami led 23-5 and held the Thunder without a field goal for the first 7:13 of the game but could not stop the desperate Thunder and Russell Westbrook.
Westbrook led the Thunder with 23 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists, his 25th triple-double this season and 104th of his career. The win secured a playoff spot for the Thunder (47-34) in the competitive Western Conference.
The Heat (43-38) have known for more than a week they were in the playoffs, but Miami still can finish anywhere from No. 6 to No. 8 in the East. The Heat’s seeding and opponent will be determined Wednesday, the final night of the regular season, when they host Toronto.
Oklahoma City outscored the Heat 16-4 to end the first quarter, and the game was close the rest of the way until the Thunder dominated the fourth quarter, outscoring the Heat, 39-12.
Josh Richardson led the Heat
with 18 points. Hassan Whiteside had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks.
Paul George led OKC with 27 points. OKC shot 14 of 35 on 3-pointers while the Heat were 5 of 22 from long distance. The biggest disparity was at the line where OKC was 31 of 38 and the Heat were 8 of 14.
Here are our five takeaways:
Heat cool off after fast start: Miami got off to one of its best starts of the season as the Thunder missed their first 10 shots. Finally, with 4:47 to play in the first quarter, Alex Abrines knocked down a 3-pointer to give OKC its first field goal. Those were its only points other than three free throws from Paul George and two from Carmelo Anthony. OKC slowly chipped away at the Heat’s lead, tying the game twice in the third quarter before taking their first lead, 85-84, with 10:28 to play. The Thunder then extended the lead to 14 points with 3:47 to play.
Regular season winding down: Miami still is look- ing to sew up the sixth seed and can do so with a victory over the Raptors and a Phil- adelphia victory over Mil- waukee. Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia and Cleveland remain in play as possible first-round opponents for the Heat. While that list could be whittled down depending on tonight’s results, Miami will not know who it plays this weekend until Wednesday’s games are final.
Whiteside with a solid effort: The Heat liked what they saw from Whiteside, who was engaged early and neutralized OKC center Steven Adams. Whiteside missed the teams’ first meeting last month and Adams had his way in the Thunder’s 105-99 win with 24 points and 12 rebounds. He also shot 9 of 13 and helped OKC outrebound the Heat, 51-41, that night. But 30 seconds into Monday’s game, Whiteside got his first block, on Adams, and sent back a George shot a couple of possessions later. Adams finished with seven points and three rebounds.
Ri c har dso n shows of fense early, quiet late: Heat coach Erik Spoelstra endorsed Richardson for the NBA’s first-team All-De- fense team before Monday’s game. While Richardson played a role in the Heat’s early defense, his offense sparked the Heat early, with nine first-quarter points. Richardson was the Heat’s best player for the month of December, but he has been inconsistent of late with one 20-point game in his last 25. The Heat could use the Richardson they saw in December in the postseason when points are harder to come by. Richardson banged knees late in the game but Spoelstra said he will be OK.
Ellington (likely) to fall shy of 3-point mark: Entering the game, Wayne Ellington needed eight 3-pointers to set the Heat franchise record for the most in a season. But Ellington struggled from the floor, missing all but one of his four threes and scoring three points. Ellington has 219 threes, meaning he needs six to tie and seven to break the record in the regular-season finale. Damon Jones holds the mark, making 225 threes in 2004-2005.