Cook Bails Out Heat

If only everything was as economical as the Daequan Cook bailout plan.

Cook was coming off a scoreless performance in Miami's win against Minnesota. But Dwyane Wade continued to trust his young teammate. The former Marquette Golden Eagle usually finds Cook for open three-pointers after driving to the hoop, and it was no different Wednesday night.

And Wade needed Cook to step up.

In a rough return to Wade's college town, Cook stepped up and connected on his first six triples before ending up with a career-high 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting in 27 minutes of action. Cook's lethal three-point shooting helped Miami get back in the game after Milwaukee jumped out to an 18-8 lead. His free-throw shooting helped the Heat stave off a late Bucks surge.
Wade's collection of missed jumpers and turnovers allowed Milwaukee to take advantage, eventually cutting the once 13-point second half lead to 97-95 with 86 seconds remaining. Both teams turned the ball over before the Bucks had a chance to tie the game with 30 seconds left. Richard Jefferson attempted a runner in the lane, but Shawn Marion blocked the shot before Cook grabbed the ball. Jefferson intentionally fouled Cook, and the former Ohio State Buckeye knocked down two free throws.

Joe Alexander's layup with 16 seconds left on the clock made it a 99-97 lead for the Heat. After Michael Redd fouled fellow Olympian Wade, and the League's leading scorer connected on one free throw. Luke Ridnour's runner made it a 100-99 game for Miami with just nine seconds to go, but the Heat fed the hot hand, Cook, who calmly connected both free throws. Alexander's three-pointer to tie the game got nothing but air as the clock expired.

Wade was only 5-for-20 from the field for 17 points and turned the ball over four times, but dished out 13 assists.

In addition to Cook's resurgence, Beasley also picked up the slack for Wade. The talented rookie out of Kansas State had 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, four rebounds and just one turnover in 28 minutes of play. Cook and Beasley, Miami's usual spark-plugs off the bench and Wednesday night's leading scorers for the Heat, combined for 45 points on 15-for-22 shooting.

Wade had no problem sharing the wealth, and five Heat players attempted 11 or more field goals. Udonis Haslem shot 8-of-13 from the field for 18 points while also collecting eight rebounds. Shawn Marion contributed 14 points on 7-of-13 shooting, 10 rebounds and the aforementioned key rejection.

Coach Erik Spoelstra opened the second half with Chris Quinn and Jamaal Magloire taking the places of Mario Chalmers and Joel Anthony, respectively. It worked for the Heat, as Miami put up nine unanswered points to start the third quarter. To me, these were a couple of common sense Spoelstra moves. Anthony did have three blocks last night, but Spoelstra went with more size in Magloire. And Chalmers has had a brutal road trip, with two scoreless nights in his last three games, so it makes sense for Quinn to get more minutes.

Quinn, however, struggled with a one-for-five shooting performance from the field. The 6-foot-2 guard out of Notre Dame also let Luke Ridnour constantly beat him off the dribble, who scored a game-high 25 points. Spoelstra couldn't go to Marcus Banks late in the game, who was again in street clothes. If Banks isn't back on the active list after Chalmers' continued struggles and Quinn's defensive liabilities exposed against Minnesota and now Milwaukee, I don't know what will.

James Jones did not even get off the bench last night. Spoelstra opted to play Yakhouba Diawara for seven minutes, and it appears that Jones' return will be a slow process.

Miami is now 3-2 on its seven-game road trip with a hurtin' Houston team up followed by the lowly Oklahoma City Thunder. The Heat, a team that has beaten top teams and lost to lowly ones, knows that every game is up for grabs. Nonetheless, it's possible that Miami could make a run at the Pistons for the fifth seed. Detroit, which occupies the fifth seed, is only one-and-a-half games above Miami and in the midst of a three-game losing streak. Atlanta, the fourth seed and only two games above Miami, has lost four of its last five games.