A win for the Heat would push their record over .500, and after three quarters of play they’ve put themselves in a good position to make it happen. After three quarters their offense has really been able to impose its will, dominating the Wizards 89-70.
If the Heat keep playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 3-2 in no time. On the other hand, the Wizards will have to make due with a 2-3 record unless they turn things around (and fast).
Miami Heat @ Washington Wizards
Current Records: Miami 2-2, Washington 2-2
The Wizards will be in front of their home fans on Saturday, but a look at the spread shows they might need that home-court advantage. They will host the Miami Heat at 8:30 p.m. ET at Mexico City Arena. The Wizards have been getting the ball to fall more lately as they’ve increased their point totals each of their last three games.
The Wizards are headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They walked away with a 133-120 victory over the Hawks on Wednesday.
The Wizards’ win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Bilal Coulibaly, who almost dropped a double-double on 27 points and nine rebounds. What’s more, Coulibaly also racked up four offensive rebounds, the most he’s had since back in February. Another player making a difference was Jonas Valanciunas, who went 8 for 10 en route to 22 points plus eight rebounds and six assists.
Meanwhile, the Heat came up short against the Knicks on Wednesday and fell 116-107. The loss hurts even more since Miami was up 70-57 with 8:20 left in the third.
The Heat might have lost, but man, Tyler Herro was a machine: he went 8 for 13 from beyond the arc en route to 34 points plus seven assists and five rebounds.
Washington’s victory ended a five-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-2. As for Miami, their loss dropped their record down to an identical 2-2.
Keep an eye on the arc in Saturday’s game: The Wizards have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having averaged 14.8 threes per game. However, it’s not like the Heat struggle in that department as they’ve been averaging 14.2. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
The Wizards came up short against the Heat in their previous meeting back in March, falling 119-107. Can the Wizards avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We’ll find out soon enough.
Miami is a solid 7-point favorite against Washington, according to the latest NBA odds.
The over/under is 226.5 points.
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Miami has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Washington.
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