Heat go off boil but plucky Raptors fall short at the final hurdle
LEBRON James tossed in 27 points while Dwyane Wade added 22, and the visiting Miami Heat held off the Toronto Raptors 90-83 on Friday night, to extend their winning streak to a season-high nine.
Ahead by 20 in the third quarter, the Heat became stagnant, allowing the Raptors to go on a 16- 4 run and pull within 83-81 with 4 minutes 40 seconds left.
But James hit a three- pointer and layup, as the two-time defending NBA champions pulled away for their 13th straight victory in the series. DeMar DeRozan netted 25 points while Rudy Gay had 21 with 11 rebounds for the Raptors (6-9), who remain atop the weak Atlantic Division despite a losing record.
Elsewhere: Russell Westbrook buried a three- pointer from the left corner with one- tenth of a second left in overtime, lifting the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 113-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors for their sixth straight win.
Westbrook finished with a seasonhigh 34 points while Kevin Durant followed with 25 and 13 boards for the Thunder (11-3) who improved to 9-0 at home.
Stephen Curry had 32 points and Harrison Barnes had a career-high 26 as the Warriors lost for the ninth straight time in the series.
Tim Duncan and Marco Belinelli scored 18 points apiece, and the San Antonio Spurs minus star point guard Tony Parker because of an ankle injury, got back to business, with a 109-101 road victory over the Orlando Magic, two nights after having their 11- game winning streak snapped.
Paul George poured in 23 points and the Indiana Pacers extended their franchise-best-start to a 15-1 record, with their sixth straight victory, 93-73, over the visiting Washington Wizards, who had won five of their last six contests.