The Miami Heat have won three straight games as they protected home floor and beat the New York Knicks Tuesday night. 109-99. With time running out on the season, this is arguably one of the team's best wins of the year in the most integral part of the schedule.
FINAL: Heat 109 – Knicks 99
Absolutely huge win for Miami as they controlled New York for most of that game until it became interesting in the fourth.
Rozier with 34 points on 10-15 shooting, 8-11 from deep.
They face Philly Thursday. #HeatCulture
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) April 3, 2024
Terry Rozier was absolutely dynamite as he scored 34 points on making 10 of his 15 shots from the field and more importantly, eight of 11 from deep. Bam Adebayo had 15 points and nine rebounds plus Jimmy Butler had 17 points to go along with six assists and five rebounds.
Here are three takeaways as the Heat beat the Knicks Tuesday night:
A 50/50 crowd creates playoff atmosphere in the first half
With the stakes really high for the regular season, it is an important game for both squads as Miami and New York are trying to solidify playoff position. It started pre-game when the fans were loud when the Knicks came out to warm up, but it's been known how well New York fanbases travel from state to state.
It was a fun back and forth to start the game as Brunson drew a foul and during his free throws, “MVP” chants were heard. A few moments later, the same happened when Butler went to the charity stripe as each fanbase were going pound for pound.
The Heat could not have started any better than they did in the first period as they scored 34 points and allowed 22 from the explosive Knicks. What the difference ended up being early was Miami's shooting from deep as they ended up making seven of their 13 shots from that range. Rozier was exceptional to start as they made three of his four attempts and had 12 first quarter points.
While Miami wouldn't match their output offensively in the next period, they were equally as good, if not a bit better on the defensive end holding the Knicks to 21 points. The Heat did a great job of dirtying up the game and making the game physical for players like Brunson to only finish with six points at halftime.
Rozier continued to be dynamite as he finished the half with 20 points while making five of six attempts from deep. Definitely an impressive first half as they're up 58-43, but mixing in Miami's past problem of sustaining leads and the Knicks being ignitable, Miami has to come out with the same effort for the second half.
Stress-inducing second half for the Heat
The Knicks fought back in the third quarter after being down 16 points, bringing the deficit to just six at one point, but Miami stood tall to close out the period up 10. DiVincenzo was crucial for New York as he had 11 points in the period to help their struggles from three-point range.
New York recorded 30 total points in the third period while Miami had 25 as it was another solid 12 minutes for Rozier who was two for three from deep and had eight points. Adebayo made his mark in this quarter after a mostly radio silent first half as he also had eight points.
However, the fourth quarter would be the ultimate test for the team to rewrite the narratives a bit and sustain a sizable lead against a very good team. The game ended up becoming close with under six minutes left as Miles McBride for the Knicks made a three to bring Miami's lead to just four points.
At one point, the Knicks took a one-point lead late in the game, but the Heat had fortitude and built back up their lead to eventually get the big victory once again on the back of Rozier who hit more clutch shots to bring his total to 34. There's no doubt Miami has huge momentum in the most important part of the season.
Not much you can do when Terry's on a heater ♨️ pic.twitter.com/LPmLlxM1ra
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) April 3, 2024
Momentum going into crucial home game Thursday
Speaking of momentum, the Heat is filled to the max with it as they take down not only a rival, but one of the more hyped teams in the Eastern Conference. The team now has won three straight games with seven contests left in the regular season.
If they want to get out of contention for the play-in tournament, they need to continue to rack up some wins, but there should not be any forgetting how well they played against New York. Miami could be peaking at the exact right time as the team no one wants to see in the post-season.
Looking ahead, they now take on another East rival in the Philadelphia 76ers, who just got back their superstar in Joel Embiid. Coming back from a long absence, but still one of the best players in the entire association when on the floor. Miami is now 42-33 as they were seventh in the conference heading into Tuesday's game.
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