Bosh, Wade log 16 each to help Heat rout Knicks
November 23, 2015 | 8:27pm
MIAMI – Tyler Johnson rose to try a dunk, and at the last moment someone impeded his path just enough to force a miss.
The culprit was Dwyane Wade, who unintentionally got in his teammate's way. Then again, the way the Miami Heat have been playing defense at home, maybe it was just habit.
Miami forced New York into missing 15 out of 16 shots in one first-half stretch, going on a 36-8 run for its best spurt of the season and eventually topping the Knicks 95-78 on Monday night (Tuesday in Manila). Wade and Chris Bosh each scored 16 for the Heat, who snapped New York's four-game winning streak and held the Knicks to a season low in points.
It was 52-30 at halftime, and numbers like that have become a trend at Heat games. New York was the eighth NBA team so far this season to score no more than 30 points in a half - and three of those instances have come by teams visiting Miami.
The Knicks hadn't even trailed by double figures in any of their last eight games. Miami led at one point by 26, simultaneously its biggest advantage and the Knicks' biggest deficit so far this season.
Goran Dragic had 13 points and nine assists for the Heat. Johnson scored 12, and Hassan Whiteside had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Carmelo Anthony scored 21 points for New York, which has lost 13 of its last 16 games in Miami. Rookie Kristaps Porzingis missed 11 of 18 shots, but still had 20 points and 14 rebounds.
New York led 13-6 early, and briefly. Miami's big run made it 42-21, and New York never got closer than 12 again. Anthony missed a 3-pointer that would have gotten the Knicks within nine early in the fourth, but it bounced off the rim and Miami put the game away with seven unanswered points that quickly got the lead back to 19.
TIP-INS
Knicks: New York's previous season low was 87 points. Porzingis opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, and has now taken the first shot for the Knicks - all jumpers - in five of their last seven games. New York was bidding for its longest winning streak since an eight-game run from March 5-21, 2013. The Knicks went 424 minutes, 7 seconds without facing a 10-point deficit until Miami got there early in the second quarter.
Heat: Miami finished 6-1 on its seven-game homestand. Amare Stoudemire was inactive because of an illness, meaning he missed a chance to face his former team. Stoudemire played for the Knicks from the start of 2010-11 season until this past February, last playing against them on March 26, 2010. Justise Winslow wished the crowd a Happy Thanksgiving in a brief pregame address. ''We appreciate all your love and support,'' he said.
SLOVENIAN FLAVOR
It's a safe guess that Knicks-Heat was a big draw in Slovenia on Monday night (Tuesday in Manila). The game featured three Slovenian players - Dragic and Beno Udrih for the Heat, and Sasha Vujacic for the Knicks.
WHITESIDE'S BLOCKS
Whiteside blocked five shots, giving him 63 through 13 games. The previous Heat record for blocks at this point of the season belonged to Alonzo Mourning, who had 50 to open the 1998-99 season.
But Whiteside's biggest contribution might have come from the foul line. A 51 percent career shooter from the line coming into the night and someone who banked one in earlier, Whiteside went 4 for 4 down the stretch when the Knicks went to the intentional-hacking tactic.
UP NEXT
Knicks visit Orlando, while Heat play Detroit on the road. Both games are on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
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