Raptors at Heat
The Miami Heat have the Eastern Conference's top seed in their sights - and they'll welcome one of their favorite punching bags as they face the visiting Toronto Raptors in a Monday night showdown. The Heat gained a half-game on the stumbling Indiana Pacers despite not playing Sunday, and are just one game back with 10 to play. The Raptors have a 2 1/2-game lead over Brooklyn in the Atlantic Division but have lost 14 straight meetings with the Heat.
Miami has won back-to-back games despite having a depleted roster in both. The Heat were at their stingy best last time out, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 88-67 with Dwyane Wade, Greg Oden, Mario Chalmers and Ray Allen all on the sidelines. The statuses for all four players remain up in the air, and Miami might need all of them to contend with a Raptors team that ranks among the best in the league on the defensive side of the basketball.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN (Toronto), Sun Sports (Miami)
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (42-31): Toronto may be getting reinforcements of its own. Forward Patrick Patterson is close to returning from an elbow injury, having participated in three-on-three scrimmage during practice after missing the previous 13 games. Head coach Dwane Casey warned against Patterson returning in midseason form, telling reporters over the weekend: "(His) conditioning is probably going to be a step behind. We need to kind of get him back in rhythm, and with the lack of practice time it's going to have to be in a game situation."
ABOUT THE HEAT (50-22): Of the four players on the Heat infirmary, Wade represents the biggest difference-maker. The veteran shooting guard is nursing a hamstring injury that has knocked him out of action for four of the last five games - and the Heat will likely monitor his workload for the rest of the season even when he returns to the lineup. A game against the Bucks provided the perfect tonic for the rest of the weary Miami lineup, with no regular starter earning more than LeBron James' 30 minutes.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Heat prevailed 102-97 in their previous encounter Jan. 5 in Miami.
2. James averages 28 points in 37 career games versus the Raptors.
3. Toronto, which won Sunday in Orlando, is 8-7 on the tail end of back-to-backs this season.