Heat Survive Pacers Rally for Rare Home Win

The Miami Heat nearly blew a 20-point lead on Friday but held on for an 89-87 win over the Indiana Pacers at American Airlines Arena.

Leading by 20 late into the third quarter, Miami soon surrendered an 11-0 run to Indiana. The Pacers would cut it even further in the final minutes. At one point, Dwyane Wade headed to the line with the Heat only up one. He would sink one free-throw and the Pacers would then miss an attempted shot at the buzzer.

The win was only Miami's eighth of the year at home in 21 tries. With the victory, the Heat improved to 19-24 overall on the season and snapped a two-game skid.

Wade was not at his best as he scored only 13 points and was inefficient making only five of his 16 attempts. Wade also turned the ball over six times and missed both of his three-point tries.

Chris Bosh found himself in foul trouble and ended up with five personals. Due to the fouls, Bosh was taken off the court for some minutes late in the fourth quarter. Towards the end, head coach Erik Spoelstra was rotating Bosh and Udonis Haslem depending on which team had the ball.

The game was a story of two halves in terms of ball movement. Miami had 15 assists in the first half as it build its lead up. In the second half, the Heat only managed five more assists. The lack of ball movement nearly proved costly.

Hassan Whiteside missed the game as he continued to recover from a sprained ankle. It is possible that Whiteside will be back in action for Miami in its next game.