Heat 101, Magic 99
MIAMI -- Although it was much closer, the Miami Heat beat the Orlando Magic for the second time in four days, winning 101-99 on Saturday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
The Heat (10-3) have won six games in a row, and their three losses are by a combined total of six points. They beat the Magic 120-92 on Wednesday.
Orlando fell to 4-8, including 0-5 on the road. The Magic and the Utah Jazz (0-8) are the only winless road teams in the NBA so far this season.
Heat forward LeBron James took a couple of hard fouls in the final four minutes. First, he was elbowed in the jaw by Magic forward Glenn Davis. Then, Magic center Nikola Vucevic fouled James, whose back hit the basket support on his way down.
But James responded, hitting a jumper at the free throw line with 15.1 seconds left -- a shot that proved to be the game-winner.
On Orlando's final possession, wing Arron Afflalo missed a spin move in the lane on an air ball. Magic guard Victor Oladipo grabbed the rebound, but his five-foot jumper from the baseline just missed off the front rim and then the back rim.
James finished with 22 points. Heat guard Dwyane Wade, playing his first game in a week, had a game-high 27 points.
Davis, playing for the first time in 10 months, led Orlando with 20 points. He suffered a cut on the right side of his face in the fourth quarter but played with tremendous energy.
After trailing virtually the entire first half, the Heat outscored the Magic by 10 points in the third quarter. Miami had a 27-11 run to tie the Magic but entered the fourth trailing 77-71.
Also in the third quarter, James reached double figures in points for the 508th consecutive game, tying him with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the fifth-longest streak in NBA history. Michael Jordan (866) has the record, followed by Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone and Moses Malone.
Orlando led 55-39 at halftime. The Magic made 51 percent of their shots from the field in the first half, including 9 of 13 on 3-pointers.
Magic guard E'Twaun Moore was hot, scoring a first-half high of 14 points in 17 minutes off the bench. He made all five of his shots, including 4 of 4 from 3-point range. However, he did not score in the second half.
Miami shot 42 percent from the field, and its 39 points represented its lowest-scoring half of the season. The Heat missed all 10 of their 3-poiont shots.
The Magic led 20-16 after the first quarter as their starting backcourt had 15 points -- eight for Jameeer Nelson and seven for Oladipo.
From the oddity department, James missed an all-alone finger roll in the first quarter, with the ball bouncing off the front rim. A couple of minutes later, Wade left the game momentarily when he was hit below the belt.
NOTES: Heat G Dwyane Wade returned to the lineup for the first time in a week. He missed two straight games while resting his aching knees. The Heat is 2-1 in the three games Wade has missed this season. ... Magic F Glen Davis, who had fractured his left foot, returned to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 30. He came off the bench with four minutes left in the first quarter. ... Magic G Tobias Harris, who sprained his left ankle in the preseason, is still out but has been practicing the past week. ... Magic C Nikola Vucevic has been mostly successful against the Heat, notably his 20-point and team-record 29-rebound game against Miami on Dec. 31, 2012. His next two games against Miami were also strong -- 25 points, 21 rebounds on March 6, 2013, and 20 points, 13 rebounds on April 17. But the Heat finally slowed him down Wednesday, holding him to six points and six rebounds. ... Magic G Victor Oladipo entered the game with more turnovers than any other player in the league. In the previous two games alone, he coughed it up a total of 17 times.
