Dragic vexes Mavericks as Heat prevail
MIAMI -- Goran Dragic scored 32 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 99-95 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Dragic clinched the win with two free throws with three seconds remaining.
Miami (13-30), which won its second straight game, also got 23 points off the bench from Tyler Johnson. Hassan Whiteside got off to a great start but finished with just 13 points and eight rebounds for the Heat.
Dallas (14-28) had its three-game winning streak snapped and fell to 6-17 on the road this season. Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas with 19 points, Wesley Matthews added 18 points, and Harrison Barnes added 15. But Barnes scored just two points in the second half.
In a battle between the two lowest-scoring teams in the league, Dragic took over in the second half. He had just 10 points in the first half but scored 11 in each of the third and fourth quarters.
Whiteside scored Miami's first seven points before exiting the game after spraining his right ankle while trying to guard Nowitzki. Whiteside returned later in the quarter and helped Miami grab a 29-22 lead heading into the second.
Miami shot 65.0 percent in the first quarter and got 20 of its 29 points in the paint. Whiteside played just five minutes but had nine points on 4-of-5 shooting.
However, Dallas outscored Miami 31-15 in the second quarter to take a 53-44 lead at the half. Dallas outshot Miami in the first half, 52.5 percent to 47.5 percent, and the Mavericks also made six more three-pointers. Barnes led all scorers at the half with 13 points, and he was a plus-10.
Miami closed its deficit to 73-70 after three quarters as Dragic began to take over the game. That trend continued in the fourth as Miami closed out Dallas.
NOTES: These franchises have history, splitting two battles in the NBA Finals, with Miami winning in 2006 and Dallas prevailing in 2011. ... Dallas hasn't won a playoff series since defeating Miami in '11. ... Undrafted Heat F Rodney McGruder made his 26th start of the season, ranking sixth in the league among rookies. ... Mavericks C Andrew Bogut (hamstring) missed his fourth straight game. ... Mavericks PF Dirk Nowitzki, 38, who averaged over 20 points in 12 straight seasons, is scoring at a 13.3 clip. It's his lowest average since his rookie season in 1998-99. ... Two Mavs starters are having career years in scoring: F Harrison Barnes (20.5) and G Seth Curry (10.3). ... Mavs reserve PG Jose Juan Barea, 32, is averaging a career-high 12.3 points. Barea, who played his high school ball locally at Miami Christian, has made it to his 11th NBA season despite being short (5-11) and undrafted out of a mid-major college (Northeastern).