The Miami Heat won their second game in as many nights Saturday, beating the Denver Nuggets at home 103-98.
They did not escape the evening entirely unscathed. Starting PG Mario Chalmers sprained his right knee in the first quarter, and had to be helped to the locker room after removing himself from the game.
Chalmers will undergo an MRI on Sunday, but his streak of 27 straight starts could come to an end (or worse, he could miss extended period of time, depending on what doctors discover).
Dwyane Wade and LeBron James each scored over 30 points in the win (33 and 32 points, respectively), while Chris Bosh added 18 points and 11 rebounds for his fifth straight double-double.
The Heat were in control early, opening the game with a 10-0 run and finishing the first quarter with a 29-21 lead. As he did the previous night in Atlanta, James had a hot hand early, scoring 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting in the first quarter.
Miami held the lead the entire game. With James and Wade sitting to start the second quarter, the Nuggets went on a quick run to pull within a point. But James and Wade re-entered, and Miami went on another 10-0 run.
Denver shot 41% to Miami's 60% in the first half, and at the break Miami held a 13-point lead.
Local
The Heat would go on to lead the entire second half. Denver did manage to pull within four points twice, but each time Denver went on a run, Miami would respond with one of its own.
Recent acquisition Mike Bibby filled in well for Chalmers, scoring 14 points with 4 three-pointers. As the only other true point guard on the team, he will see significantly more playing time.
Heat fans will soon find out if 10 games was enough time for Bibby to fully get comfortable with his new team, but not before Wednesday, when the Heat take on the Pistons in Detroit.
David Hill is a Miami native and former owner of a youth replica Rony Seikaly jersey.
