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Bosh leads Heat rally over Magic

 
Published Nov. 23, 2014

ORLANDO — The contrast in the middle was undeniable. On one end, the Magic's Nik Vucevic was powering his way to the rim. On the other end, Chris Bosh was lofting jumpers, his effort more art form than muscle work. This time, the style points made the difference.

With Bosh scoring 14 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, the Heat defeated the Magic 99-92 Saturday. Miami has beaten Orlando 10 straight times dating back to last season.

While Vucevic closed with 33 points and 17 rebounds, Bosh had 10 rebounds, and finished 13-of-20 from the field and 4-of-6 on 3-pointers for his season-high point total. Heat point guard Mario Chalmers had 24 points, eight assists and five rebounds.

The Heat survived for the second time in a week without guard Dwyane Wade, who missed his fifth consecutive game with a strained left hamstring. The Heat won in a similar spot Monday on the road against the Nets.

Both teams were shorthanded, with the Heat playing without its starting backcourt of Wade and Norris Cole, and Orlando without starting small forward Tobias Harris.

Report: Howard out indefinitely with injury

HOUSTON — There is no timetable for Rockets All-Star center Dwight Howard's return after he had platelet-rich plasma therapy to treat his strained right knee, coach Kevin McHale said before Saturday's game against the Mavericks, espn.com reported.

It was the second consecutive game missed by Howard, who warmed up before Wednesday's loss to the Lakers before it was determined minutes before tip-off that he could not play. Howard had the platement therapy on Thursday.

"It feels a lot better," Howard said, according to the Houston Chronicle. "I had to get a shot in it to clear some of the stuff out of it. I'm trying to do whatever I can to get back on the floor."

Kobe Bryant of the Lakers had the same treatment last year when he sustained an Achilles tendon injury.

Durant, Westbrook return … sort of

Thunder forward Kevin Durant and guard Russell Westbrook were slated to participate in parts of the team's practice Saturday, the first team work for either since their injuries.

"Probably not any of the contact stuff," coach Scott Brooks told the Daily Oklahoman on Friday. "(But) they will go through some of our practice and we'll go from there."

On Friday, Westbrook dribbled and shot wearing a splint on his right hand, and Durant successfully jumped off his right foot for two dunks. By the league hardship rule, neither Durant nor Westbrook can return until the team's Nov. 28 home game against the Knicks.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS: Gerald Green led all scorers with 23 and the Suns beat the host Pacers 106-83. Phoenix got its fourth straight win, all on the road during a six-game road trip. Indiana had won four of its past five entering Saturday's contest. Markieff Morris scored 13 for Phoenix and Goran Dragic had 11. Isaiah Thomas pitched in with 16 points off the bench for the Suns. Indiana was led by Rodney Stuckey, who scored 14 points off the Pacers' bench. Indiana's Roy Hibbert left the game midway through the second quarter with a sprained left ankle.

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AROUND THE LEAGUE: Knicks center Andrea Bargnani has a strained right calf that prevented him from making his season debut against the 76ers. The former No. 1 overall pick was hurt Friday during practice and an MRI exam revealed the injury.

LATE FRIDAY: Cleveland set a season low for points and shooting percentage in losing to the host Wizards 91-78. Cavs All-Star LeBron James scored 22, but he shot just 8-for-21. The Cavs fell behind 16 in the third quarter and never recovered. It was their first game under 80 points, their second time shooting less than 40 percent, and Cleveland committed 19 turnovers. John Wall led the Wizards with 28, and the Wizards' bench outscored the Cavs reserves 40-9. … Lou Williams scored a season-high 22, Jonas Valanciunas added 18 points and 12 rebounds, and the host Raptors routed the Bucks 124-82. Toronto matched its largest margin of victory in franchise history, set in a 96-54 victory over Miami on March 19, 2008. On Saturday, the league announced a scoring change, giving the Bucks' John Henson, a former Sickles High standout, credit for a 2-point shot instead of a 3-pointer. … Dirk Nowitzki scored 23 and the host Mavericks rolled to a 140-106 victory against the Lakers. Nowitzki, Monta Ellis (20 points) and former Gator Chandler Parsons (21) were a combined 23-of-33 from the field as the Mavericks set season highs in points, shooting percentage (62 percent) and assists (37). The Mavericks came into the game averaging a league-high 108.9 points a game. Kobe Bryant was 6-of-22 for 17 points for the Lakers.

Heat 99, Magic 92

MIAMI (99): Deng 4-9 0-0 9, Williams 3-6 2-2 10, Bosh 13-20 2-2 32, Chalmers 10-16 2-4 24, Brown 2-6 2-2 7, Napier 4-8 2-4 12, Andersen 1-4 3-4 5, Ennis 0-0 0-0 0, McRoberts 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 37-71 13-18 99.

ORLANDO (92): Fournier 5-15 0-0 11, Frye 3-6 2-2 9, Vucevic 12-24 9-11 33, Oladipo 5-11 3-5 14, Green 0-5 0-0 0, Harkless 1-2 0-0 2, Payton 4-6 1-4 9, B.Gordon 2-3 3-4 7, Dedmon 3-6 1-1 7. Totals 35-78 19-27 92.

Miami 22 27 19 31— 99

Orlando 18 28 21 25— 92

3-Point GoalsMiami 12-26 (Bosh 4-6, Williams 2-4, Chalmers 2-5, Napier 2-5, Deng 1-2, Brown 1-2, Andersen 0-1, McRoberts 0-1), Orlando 3-16 (Frye 1-4, Oladipo 1-4, Fournier 1-5, Green 0-3). ReboundsMiami 40 (Bosh 10), Orlando 50 (Vucevic 17). AssistsMiami 17 (Chalmers 8), Orlando 18 (Fournier 6). Total FoulsMiami 20, Orlando 20. A18,846 (18,500).

Suns 106, Pacers 83

PHOENIX (106): Marc.Morris 2-8 1-1 6, Mark.Morris 5-8 3-3 13, Plumlee 2-3 0-0 4, G.Dragic 5-12 0-0 11, Bledsoe 2-10 5-5 9, Len 3-3 0-0 6, Tucker 2-4 1-2 5, Green 8-15 2-3 23, Tolliver 3-7 2-2 11, Thomas 5-11 4-4 16, Goodwin 0-3 0-0 0, Warren 0-0 0-0 0, Randolph 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 38-85 18-20 106.

INDIANA (83): Copeland 3-9 0-0 8, Scola 0-4 1-2 1, Hibbert 0-1 2-2 2, Sloan 3-12 0-0 8, S.Hill 6-13 0-0 13, Mahinmi 5-8 2-4 12, Stuckey 3-10 7-8 14, Allen 4-8 0-0 8, Price 2-10 1-2 6, Rudez 2-6 0-0 4, Whittington 3-3 1-2 7. Totals 31-84 14-20 83.

Phoenix 30 25 25 26— 106

Indiana 27 21 16 19— 83

3-Point GoalsPhoenix 12-31 (Green 5-9, Tolliver 3-7, Thomas 2-5, Marc.Morris 1-1, G.Dragic 1-4, Tucker 0-1, Goodwin 0-1, Bledsoe 0-3), Indiana 7-23 (Sloan 2-4, Copeland 2-6, Stuckey 1-3, S.Hill 1-4, Price 1-5, Rudez 0-1). ReboundsPhoenix 55 (Bledsoe 9), Indiana 53 (Scola, Mahinmi 10). AssistsPhoenix 17 (Bledsoe 5), Indiana 18 (S.Hill 4). Total FoulsPhoenix 19, Indiana 20. A16,870 (18,165).

Raptors 110, Cavaliers 93

TORONTO (110): Ross 1-5 0-0 2, A.Johnson 2-7 1-2 6, Valanciunas 4-5 0-0 8, Lowry 5-14 11-12 23, DeRozan 7-18 6-7 20, Williams 9-19 15-15 36, Patterson 1-4 2-2 5, Hayes 1-1 1-2 3, Vasquez 2-7 2-2 7, Stiemsma 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 32-80 38-42 110.

CLEVELAND (93): James 6-12 2-3 15, Love 8-16 7-7 23, Varejao 5-9 3-6 13, Irving 7-14 5-7 21, Marion 1-6 0-0 2, Waiters 3-9 0-0 6, Cherry 0-1 0-0 0, Thompson 4-9 3-6 11, Harris 0-3 0-0 0, Miller 1-2 0-0 2, Amundson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-81 20-29 93.

Toronto 21 35 29 25— 110

Cleveland 34 20 17 22— 93

3-Point GoalsToronto 8-24 (Williams 3-8, Lowry 2-5, Patterson 1-2, A.Johnson 1-3, Vasquez 1-3, DeRozan 0-1, Ross 0-2), Cleveland 3-16 (Irving 2-5, James 1-4, Miller 0-1, Marion 0-1, Love 0-1, Waiters 0-2, Harris 0-2). ReboundsTor. 43 (Patterson 6), Clev. 64 (Varejao 12). AssistsToronto 20 (Lowry 8), Cleveland 24 (James 10). Total FoulsTor. 26, Clev. 28. TechnicalsTor. defensive three second. A20,562 (20,562).