Even without Big 3, Heat wrap up playoff home-court edge

WASHINGTON -- How many times could the Miami Heat win a game without LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, commit 25 turnovers and attempt a franchise-record 41 3-pointers?

The answer is at least once.

With James, Wade and Bosh unavailable, Ray Allen matched his season high with 23 points, and Miami clinched home-court advantage throughout the playoffs with a 103-98 win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.

Rashard Lewis scored 17 points, and Shane Battier had 15 points with five 3-pointers for the Heat (62-16). Miami made more 3-point field goals (17) than shots from inside the arc (16) and pulled away with an 11-2 run late in the fourth quarter before the sellout crowd of 20,308.

"Very gratifying win for all the guys in the locker room," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "Not for long term -- but on a given night -- our depth is there for a reason."

That depth was put in play because for the first time this season Miami took the court without James (sore right hamstring), Wade (sore right knee) or Bosh (flu).

"Right now it's about getting them healthy," Spoelstra said before the game.

James missed his fourth game of the season after scoring 28 points in 30 minutes against Milwaukee on Tuesday night. The nine-time All-Star sported a thick wrap on his right thigh after the win, though Spoelstra denied any setback occurred against the Bucks.

"Want to make sure he feels right," the coach said. "He was a little bit tight yesterday after the game. That was probably to be expected. It was the same amount of tightness he had after Saturday night's game, but we had two days off in between, so he was able to manage that. That was not the case (Wednesday) with the quick turnaround, so hopefully we can continue to get him stronger each day."

Udonis Haslem, who has been dealing with an ankle injury, also sat out the victory that ensured every playoff series the team participates in will begin in Miami.

"The home court, we have it, but we don't want to be afraid of it," Spoelstra said. "You can't be afraid of success. We've had a target on our back all year. That's the way it should be coming off the Finals from last year. We talked about it from the very first day of training camp. This is a different year, a different journey."

It certainly was a different-looking Miami team against Washington. Without their top three scorers, the Heat turned into a pure 3-point shooting squad. Mike Miller made four and scored 14 points, while Mario Chalmers hit four 3's en route to 13 points.

"If it was up to me we would have shot more," Miller cracked.

A.J. Price matched his career high with 23 points, and John Wall had 17 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Wizards (29-50), who had won nine straight home games. Washington has dropped three straight overall, and it has allowed 37 3-pointers over the past two games.

"Honestly we should have blown that team out," Wizards forward Martell Webster said. "To tell you the truth, we just couldn't get it going. You have to be able to take care of those games."

This was another game where the Wizards rarely executed the game plan when facing teams missing main players.

"That's been our nemesis all year," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said.

Neither side could pull away until the Heat jumped in front 85-76 during the fourth quarter. After the Wizards quickly rallied back within 87-86 with 4:59 remaining, Allen scored six straight points, including his first 3-pointer of the game. Chris Anderson's two free throws capped the run, making it 98-88 with 2:52 left. Allen and Lewis combined for 19 points in the final period.

Spoelstra: "The fourth quarter execution was very good precision, moving the ball, driving and kicking, finding the open guy. And Ray and Rashard went a little retro together."

Webster scored 12 points for the Wizards, but left midway through the third quarter with an abdominal strain. He did not return.

NOTES: Miami won the season series 3-1. ... Trevor Ariza (sore right knee) sat out his second straight game for the Wizards. ... James remains eight points shy of scoring 2,000 points for the seventh time in eight seasons. ... Heat forward Juwan Howard, who turned 40 in February, began his NBA career with the Washington Bullets. ... The Wizards next play Friday against the Philadelphia 76ers, their final home game of the season. The Heat host the Boston Celtics on Friday.