Heat 114, Wizards 94
MIAMI -- Forward Luol Deng scored 27 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 114-94 win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.
The Heat, playing without their top two scorers forward Chris Bosh and guard Dwyane Wade for the second consecutive game, never trailed after scoring 11 unanswered points for a 15-5 lead with 6:54 remaining in the first period. Guard Goran Dragic keyed the run with five points.
Center Hassan Whiteside returned from a one-game suspension and scored a career high 25 points and had 22 rebounds for the Heat. Whiteside, who sat out Miami's game at Atlanta on Friday for his flagrant elbow on San Antonio's Boban Marjanovic on Feb. 9, also finished with three blocked shots.
Dragic finished with 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Miami.
Miami extended an 11-point lead at the end of the first quarter to 50-30 after Whiteside's layup with 4:05 remaining in the second period. The basket capped a 9-0 run for the Heat.
Playing games on three consecutive nights finally took a toll on the Wizards, who misfired on 19 of 22 Guard Bradley Beal led Washington with 19 but shot 8 of 20.
The Wizards got to within 57-44 after guard John Wall's jumper with 24 seconds remaining in the second quarter. Dragic's layup with three second left in the period gave Miami a 59-44 lead at halftime.
Whiteside's tip-in with 7:22 remaining in the fourth quarter gave the Heat their second 20-point lead at 96-75.
Rookie forward Justise Winslow was Miami's fourth scorer to score in double figures with 14 points. Winslow caught an inadvertent elbow to the forehead from teammate Josh Richardson midway through the second period. He was sent to the dressing room for precaution but returned and played in the second half.
NOTES: Miami SG Dwyane Wade underwent an MRI exam on his left knee on Saturday. The results were negative, according to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. Wade felt discomfort on the back of his knee before Friday's game at Atlanta and did not play. His status is day-to-day. ... Washington's third consecutive game on Saturday was the first time a team dealt with a similar stretch since Indiana on Feb. 4-6, 2013. The Wizards-Utah Jazz game on Thursday was previously scheduled for Jan. 23 but was postponed because of a blizzard that affected the mid-eastern United States. ... The consecutive wins over Utah and Detroit on Thursday and Friday provided the Wizards a brief break from the current stretch of games with a heavy road tilt. The Wizards played three consecutive away games before the All-Star break and will play three of their next four on the road. ... Miami's win against the Hawks on Friday ended a 15-of-19 stretch of road games that began on Jan. 8. Miami finished 8-7 during the period away from home. Saturday's game against the Wizards opened a three-game homestand - the first extended stay at home since the Heat enjoyed a four-game stretch from Dec. 18-25.