Heat Face Hornets In Big Eastern Conference Matchup
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MIAMI (CBSMiami/SportsDirect) – The NBA season is beginning to wind down but the league's standings are anything but calm.
The jumbled Eastern Conference playoff race takes front and center Thursday when the Charlotte Hornets visit the Miami Heat in a matchup of teams that have been climbing the ladder of late.
The Heat gained sole possession of third place in the East by virtue of Boston's loss Wednesday and have won four in a row at home.
"Our guys are pros, they're competitors. Everybody looks at the standings," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters Wednesday, a day after a 124-119 victory over Denver. "That's fine. I have no problem with that. A lot of guys are aware of it."
The sixth-place Hornets kept pace with a 107-99 triumph over Orlando on Wednesday, pulling a game behind Miami and a half-game behind Boston and Atlanta.
That capped a 6-1 homestand for Charlotte, which begins a stretch in which it plays 10 of 14 on the road in a place that it has dropped 12 in a row.
There were 26 lead changes the last time these teams met, when Dwyane Wade scored 22 points to help the Heat steal a 98-95 victory on the road.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Charlotte), FSN Sun (Miami)
ABOUT THE HORNETS (38-29): Charlotte has won 14 of 17 overall and Wednesday's result was not nearly as close as the final score would suggest as the gap was 26 points at one point in the second half.
Marvin Williams and Nicolas Batum scored 26 points apiece while Cody Zeller registered 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Williams is averaging 20.2 points over a six-game hot stretch and had a season-high 27 on 12-of-17 shooting in the previous meeting with Miami.
ABOUT THE HEAT (39-28): Rookie Josh Richardson continued to emerge with 17 points against the Nuggets, giving him an average of 15.3 - nearly 11 more than his season average - over his last four games.
Fellow first-year standout Justise Winslow had 20 points versus Denver as seven Heat players reached double figures in the squad's second-best offensive output this season. Hassan Whiteside (18 points, 10 rebounds) was held out of the contact portion of Wednesday's practice because of soreness, but is expected to play Friday.
BUZZER BEATERS
- Wade needs 24 points to become the 45th player in NBA/ABA history to reach 20,000 for his career.
- Charlotte entered Wednesday tied for third in the NBA in 3-pointers per game (10.5), while Miami was 28th (6.0).
- Whiteside had a triple-double (10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks) and Miami went 0-of-9 from 3-point range in the previous encounter.
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