On Monday night, the Miami Heat got a huge game out of big man Hassan Whiteside to help defeat an underhanded Cleveland Cavaliers team. The win was essential for Miami to stay afloat in the postseason chase as Chicago and Indiana continue to hold on to the final two open spots for the NBA Playoffs picture. Here's a look at how Whiteside and his team captured this big win in overtime on Monday evening.
Heat win 124-121 in OT
For tonight's game, bench player Tyler Johnson served as the big hero. In the final moments of the extra session, it was Johnson coming up with four crucial free throws to help secure a Miami victory.
It was also the second-straight game that Cleveland held a double-digit lead heading into the fourth quarter, only to find it cut into by the opponents and eventually the game was sent to overtime to decide the winner.
Hassan Whiteside put in another double-double performance to help lead the way. The Miami center finished with 23 points and a staggering 18 rebounds to go with two blocks, an assist, and a steal. Teammate Josh Richardson finished with 19 points, six rebounds, five steals, and four assists, while guard Tyler Johnson came off the bench to score 24 points including three-of-six three-pointers. The Heat finished the game with just 13 turnovers compared to 21 for the Cavs.
For Cleveland, only Kevin Love of the "Big Three" played tonight.
Love finished with a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds. Point guard Deron Williams came up big in tonight's game too with 35 points, nine assists, and seven rebounds, but he also had nearly half of the team's turnovers. LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and James Jones all sat out to rest.
NBA standings & what's next
With the victory, the Miami Heat are now 40-41 for the season and still alive in the 2017 NBA playoff chase.
They're currently tied with Chicago in terms of record but the Bulls have the tiebreaker. Indiana is 41-40 and has yet to clinch. The Miami Heat have just one game left when they play the Wizards at home on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. However, the Chicago Bulls may have a much easier game, as they'll take on the league's worst team record-wise, the Brooklyn Nets on the same night.
As for the Cleveland Cavaliers, tonight's loss stung particularly because it now has them as the No. 2 seed in the East playoff standings. At 51-30 they know trail the 52-29 Boston Celtics by a game for the top spot. The Cavs are also on a three-game losing streak. Their final game of the season comes on Wednesday when they host the Toronto Raptors at 8 p.m. Eastern Time.