Wade scores 40 to lead Heat over Pistons
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Miami, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Dwyane Wade poured in 40 points and the Miami Heat held off a second-half rally from Detroit in their 109-102 win over the Pistons.
Wade scored 19 points in the fourth quarter to preserve Miami's second win in its last three games. Udonis Haslem added 18 points and 13 rebounds, and James Ennis scored 16 points to tie a career high.
"We're just taking the last-man-standing approach," said Haslem. "It just so happens that I'm the last man standing."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Andre Drummond scored a career-high 32 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Pistons, who had a four-game winning streak snapped. Reggie Jackson added 31 points, but the rest of the Pistons combined to shoot just 14-of-49.
After Wade missed a turnaround shot to open the second half, the Heat made six straight attempts, including a pair of 3s from Ennis, to go up 63-50. They went up by as many as 17 but did not score in the final four minutes of the period.
Detroit pulled within 71-65 when it finished the third quarter on an 11-0 run that included two long-distance shots from Jodie Meeks.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's layup opened the fourth and cut the Pistons' deficit to four, but Wade scored the next four points in a 12-4 spurt to regain some breathing room.
"We had too many defensive breakdowns, and we missed far too many shots," said Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy.
With a minute to play, Jackson's layup made the score 98-90, and the Pistons began to foul to extend the game. The Heat hit 11-of-12 attempts from the free-throw line in the final minute to keep the game out of reach, but Detroit did get as close as five with 16 seconds left on Drummond's three- point play.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Pistons could not have had a hotter start in search of their fifth straight win. They made their first five shots and eight of their first nine to go up 17-9.
Michael Beasley tied the score at 25 with four seconds left in the opening period, but Joel Anthony's tip-in at the buzzer gave Detroit a 27-25 lead after one.
Detroit did not have the same hot start in the second quarter. It took nearly five minutes for the Pistons to get their first points, and they hit their first shot from the floor on the next possession when Tayshaun Prince converted a three-point play.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}While the Pistons struggled to open the quarter, the Heat started on a 9-0 run and took a 49-44 lead into the locker room. Detroit started the period shooting just 1-of-13 from the field but hit four of its last five to remain in the game.
Game Notes
Wade was questionable entering the game after having fluid drained from his knee on Saturday ... Each team has a win in the season series with the deciding game on Saturday in Detroit ... Miami lost forward Luol Deng in the first half with a knee contusion ... Meeks scored 11 off the bench for the Pistons.