Heat Escape With Road Win

So far this season, Miami has been a one step forward, one step back type of team. The Heat was great at home, but awful on the road. And although the Washington Wizards did not have Gilbert Arenas, Miami played well against the Wizards to escape with a 94-87 road win.

The game stayed tight in the first half, but the Heat went on a run to build up an eight-point lead going into the final stanza of play. Miami had its breathing room for nine minutes of the third quarter before the Wizards went on a 6-0 run to close Miami's gap to 87-90 with just over two minutes to go with a layup from Antawn Jamison. However, that layup would be the last bucket for the Wizards. Shawn Marion and Dwyane Wade both iced the game for Miami in the final minutes of play with two points apiece.

Wade, playing despite suffering a sprained ankle, played very gingerly. He only shot 6-for-16 from the field, but made it to the free-throw line 10 times, grabbed six rebounds, dished out 10 assists, collected two steals and rejected two shots. As always, the turnovers were there for the 6-foot-4 guard out of Marquette. Wade had five mishaps, but no one else had more than two as the entire team had 14 turnovers.
Wade had a quiet start, and Marion was able to step up in the first half. Marion, who logged a team-high 41 minutes of play, shot 5-of-11 from the field for 10 first-half points. Marion cooled down in the second half, but his hot shooting was needed in the first half. The 6-foot-7 forward for Miami finished with 12 points and nine rebounds. One can only speculate, however, whether Marion's role as the offensive focus was a showcase him to other General Managers around the League.

Another unexpected hero for Miami was Mario Chalmers. The rookie out of Kansas shot five-for-seven from the field and three-for-five from downtown en route to a 15 point, six assist performance. Chalmers' minutes at the point were again roughly balanced with Chris Quinn. Quinn scored 10 points on four-of-nine shooting.

While Chalmers finally found his shot, Miami's other rookie had a very rocky game. Second overall pick Michael Beasley played only 16 minutes and got into early foul trouble. Beasley had just two points at halftime and was benched again in the fourth quarter.

Beasley's front-line partner, Udonis Haslem, registered a double-double. The 6-foot-8 center out of Florida had 12 points on five-for-eight shooting and 11 rebounds. Joel Anthony was the first center to replace Haslem and did what he was signed on to do: defense and rebounding. Last night, Anthony had six rebounds and three blocks in just 20 minutes of action.

Daequan Cook provided 13 points off the bench for Miami. Not only did Cook shoot well from the field, he grabbed four rebounds and dished out five assists. In just one year, Cook has gone from a one-dimensional three-point threat to a multifaceted menace.

Erik Spoelstra's team will not get much time to celebrate the win. The Heat will finish the second night of a back-to-back at home against the Toronto Raptors tonight at 7:30 p.m. Miami came up close north of the border, but will have a chance at revenge tonight.