An injury ridden Miami Heat team took the Golden State Warriors to a slugfest as they battled it out in Oracle Arena on Tuesday night. The Warriors looked to improve their league best 32-6 record while the Heat were 29th in the league with 11-29. The heat would be without the services Justise Winslow, Josh McRoberts, Josh Richardson and Udonis Haslem due to injuries. The Warriors' Klay Thompson would also miss the game as he was sidelined due to an illness. (Up-to-date injuries for all teams are available at Rotoworld.)
The Heat would jump out to an early 16-9 advantage in the first, but the Warriors would pull to within 2 at the buzzer. It would be Golden State who would take a 6 point lead late in the second but the Heat would rally right back behind the 16 point 10 rebound performance of Hassan Whiteside in the first 24 minutes of the game. Miami would go into the half with a 1 point lead over Golden State, 54-53. (Check out NBA.com for all the stats and highlights on this game and more.)
Kevin Durant drilled a 3-point shot to open the third quarter and gave Golden State the lead, one which they never relinquished for the rest of the game. The Heat, however, would not go away without a fight. Hassan Whiteside was a force of nature as he scored 28 points and grabbed 20 rebounds for his team, helping them pull to within 3 with still 6:35 left to go in the game. But, too much offense from Golden State overwhelmed the undermanned Heat down the stretch, as they were outscored 17-7 in the next 4 minutes.
Miami would go on to lose the game, 107-95, despite the monstrous double-double from Whiteside. The Warriors were able to out rebound the Heat 48-45 without any player tallying double digit rebounds. The struggles continue for the Heat as they travel to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks while Golden State looks to continue their home stand against the Detroit Pistons.
