Heat Clamp Down To Beat Pacers, NBA Scores

By ESPN

Winning consecutive games at home for the first time all season isn't exactly something to celebrate, particularly when the season is nearly two months old.

For the Miami Heat, it's a start.

Hassan Whiteside had 26 points and 22 rebounds, and the Heat clamped down defensively to beat the Indiana Pacers 95-89 on Wednesday night. Miami held the Pacers to 37 percent shooting and outrebounded them 58-38.

"Guess that's what you can expect with a Heat-Pacers game, regardless of who the faces are," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. "It was good for us to grind out another one."

No, this wasn't one of those playoff battles with the Pacers that featured LeBron James and Dwyane Wade almost always finding a way for the Heat in recent years. This time, it was the likes of Tyler Johnson and James Johnson coming up big, combining for 29 points off the bench -- and Whiteside simply controlling the paint during his 34 minutes.

"I try to lead by example," Whiteside said.

Paul George scored 22 for the Pacers, who were hoping for a season-best third straight win and instead managed just 10 points in the fourth quarter. CJ Miles added 15 for Indiana.

"This is a game that we should have won," George said. "It's frustrating. ... We played OK. We just didn't finish well."

Neither team led by more than seven, and the

Wednesday, December 14 Scoreboard

Toronto 123, Philadelphia 114

Washington 109, Charlotte 106

Los Angeles Clippers 113, Orlando 108

Miami 95, Indiana 89

Brooklyn 107, Los Angeles Lakers 97

Memphis 93, Cleveland 85

Houston 132, Sacramento 98

Detroit 95, Dallas 85

Utah 109, Oklahoma City 89

San Antonio 108, Boston 101

Thursday, December 15 Schedule (All Times Central)

Chicago at Milwaukee, 7 p.m.

Indiana at New Orleans, 7 p.m.

Portland at Denver, 8 p.m.

San Antonio at Phoenix, 8 p.m.

New York at Golden State, 9:30 p.m.

Friday, December 16 Schedule (All Times Central)

Detroit at Washington, 6 p.m.

Brooklyn at Orlando, 6 p.m.

Charlotte at Boston, 6:30 p.m.

Atlanta at Toronto, 6:30 p.m.

Milwaukee at Chicago, 7 p.m.

Sacramento at Memphis, 7 p.m.

New Orleans at Houston, 7 p.m.

Los Angeles Lakers at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.

Los  Angeles Clippers at Miami, 7 p.m.

Dallas at Utah, 9:30 p.m.

Saturday, December 17 Schedule (All Times Central)

Phoenix at Oklahoma City, 4 p.m.

Indiana at Detroit, 6 p.m.

Charlotte at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m.

Los Angeles Lakers at Cleveland, 6:30 p.m.

Houston at Minnesota, 7 p.m.

New York at Denver, 8 p.m.

Portland at Golden State, 9:30 p.m.

Sunday, December 18 Schedule (All Times Central)

Los Angeles Clippers at Washington, 2:30 p.m.

Utah at Memphis, 5 p.m.

Brooklyn at Philadelphia, 5 p.m.

Toronto at Orlando, 5 p.m.

Boston at Miami, 5 p.m.

Sacramento at Dallas, 6 p.m.

New Orleans at San Antonio, 6 p.m.