MIAMI (AP) – This was vintage Dwyane Wade, and he knew exactly what he was doing.
He intentionally fouled Ben Simmons in the final seconds of a tie game, usually an absolute no-no. He didn’t give the ball up on the ensuing possession with his team down by one, choosing instead to decide the outcome himself.
The foul? Brilliant.
The shot? Even better.
Wade scored 15 of Miami’s final 17 points, finished with a season-high 27 and his jumper with 5.9 seconds remaining lifted the Heat to a 102-101 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night. And yes, he punctuated the gamewinner with the “this is my house’’ signal and yell to the crowd, as if there was any doubt that he somehow lost the deed to the building during his stints in Chicago and Cleveland.
“There’s something about Dwyane Wade when you put that Miami Heat jersey on and play in front of these fans,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He becomes somebody very special.”
Goran Dragic scored 21 for the Heat, who got 16 points from Tyler Johnson and 15 points and 11 rebounds from Hassan Whiteside.
Joel Embiid scored 23 points for Philadelphia, which got 21 from Dario Saric. The 76ers led by as many as 10 in the fourth and had a chance to win at the buzzer, but JJ Redick’s wide-open 3-point try bounced off the rim.
“D-Wade down the stretch was amazing,” Redick said.
LILLARD SHINES
Meantime, Damian Lillard did not hesitate when asked about how well the Portland Trail Blazers have been playing recently.
“It’s the best place I think we’ve been in years,” he said.
Lillard had 26 points and 12 assists, and the Blazers won their fourth straight with a 116-99 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night.
Jusuf Nurkic added 17 points and nine rebounds for Portland, which sits in fifth place in the Western Conference – a game back of San Antonio – after winning five of its last six games. The current four-game winning streak matched the team’s longest of the season.
