The Miami Heat fought hard and earned a third straight victory with a 101-93 overtime win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
With 4.5 seconds left in regulation, Dwyane Wade was fouled with his team down one. The veteran guard nailed both free throws to put Miami up one. On the following Indiana possession, Wade would commit of a foul of his own with less than a second to go. Monta Ellis ended up making one of two free throws to send the game to overtime.
Wade struggled mightily in the first half of this one before finding his groove in the latter half of the game. Across the final minutes of regulation and overtime, Wade took over the game both defensively and offensively. The veteran erased a start that saw him miss his first ten shots with some exciting clutch play. Wade had been 1-13 in the game at one time and had only six points late into the game. The guard ended up with 16 points on 4-21 shooting.
The Heat who will be without Chris Bosh for the foreseeable future, saw another injury added to the list in this one. Beno Udrih was forced to exit early with a left foot injury. X-rays were negative on the foot, but Udrih could miss some time depending on the severity of the injury.
Hassan Whiteside was once again the big star for Miami with another double-double. Whiteside came off the bench and posted 19 points to go with 18 rebounds. Whiteside also blocked six shots including one big swat in overtime.
This win was a big one for Miami as it avoids a scenario where Indiana would hold a tiebreaker. The teams remain close in the standings, and a tie at the end of the regular season is a strong possibility.
Miami will host the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday in one of the biggest games of the season. Golden State will enter the game with only five losses on the entire season.
