Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Kel’el Ware has big night as the Heat take down the Nets

The Heat cruised to a win against the tanking Nets, completing the miniseries in Miami. The Heat scored 122.3 points per 100 possessions, good enough for the 72nd percentile, per Cleaning the Glass. And Kel’el Ware had a double-double (16 points and 11 rebounds, but notably had seven blocks and five steals off the bench. 

The zone was featured again, and coach Erik Spoelstra was pleased with its production. He also cited Ware’s impact in it, and said he likes it because it keeps the youngster closer to the basket. 

The Nets hung around for a half, and even torched the Heat at the rim and corners. The Heat’s 3-point shots weren’t falling, yet they led by four going into intermission owing to frequent trips to the line, scoring 15 points off turnovers and Ware turning into a wrecking ball on defense. 

Michael Porter Jr. came out of the break, nailing outside shots for Brooklyn, yet Tyler Herro scored a dozen points in the third quarter, which included breaking into the lane thrice.

They subsequently detonated inside the arc in the last frame, and had three players log three field goals apiece.

The Heat won 126-110 after eight lead changes and three ties. They also had a 19-6 edge in fastbreak points and scored 20 more points in the lane.

Adebayo said it was a professional win on Tuesday against Brooklyn, and Spoelstra repeated the same thing on Thursday. They’ll have a chance for another  “professional” win against the Hornets on Friday in Charlotte on the second night of a back-to-back. The Hornets have a 19-6 record since Jan. 10, and unlike the Nets, the season still means something to them. 

On top of that, Adebayo praised Ware’s efficiency (77.8%), and said, “He was able to showcase a lot of, obviously, the defensive side.”

Both the Heat and the Orlando Magic are a half-game out of the sixth seed, but the latter owns the tiebreaker.