RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
MIAMI (AP) -- Tim Hardaway showed his entire repertoire Tuesday
night, the crossover dribbles, the no-look passes, the fearless
3-pointers. He even added a couple of staredowns for good measure.
|  | | The Heat do not want Tim Hardaway to be large, but his game-winning shot Tuesday was huge, lifting Miami past Charlotte. |
Hardaway had 17 points and eight assists and hit a game-winning
3-pointer with 7.6 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Miami
Heat a 89-86 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
Hardaway, playing his best basketball in recent years, also made
two free throws with 12.4 seconds left that tied the game and sent
it to overtime. Between free throws, Charlotte coach Paul Silas
contemplated calling a timeout to try to ice Hardaway. He even
signaled timeout at one point before changing his mind.
"He was trying to use psychology, trying to ice me. And that
doesn't work on me. I'm from the 'hood," said Hardaway, who was
3-of-7 shooting from 3-point range.
After making the second free throw, Hardaway stared intently at
Silas from midcourt for several seconds. Hardaway gave Silas
another look after hitting the game-winner, this one coming with
his arms raised in celebration. It didn't end until Hardaway was
surrounded by his teammates -- including ailing center Alonzo
Mourning -- at center court.
"You have to step up in that situation," said Hardaway, who
also had three rebounds, a blocked shot and just two turnovers.
"When it comes your turn, your time, you have to make the play. I
always want to be the guy who takes the big shot. It goes back to
my childhood days, and I've been that way my entire career."
Anthony Mason added 16, Brian Grant had 15 and Eddie Jones 19
before leaving with a strained calf muscle in the closing minutes
of the fourth quarter. Heat coach Pat Riley was unsure if Jones
would make the team's road trip to New Jersey.
The Heat, who led by as many as 15 points in the first half,
didn't trail in the second half until David Wesley made a 3-pointer
with 35.2 seconds to play. With the score 82-80, Jamal Mashburn
could have given the Hornets a three-point lead after Miami drew a
technical foul for calling a timeout with none left, but he missed
the free throw.
"This was a bizarre game," Riley said. "We held on and were
very lucky at the end to win. We will take anything we can get at
this stage."
Mashburn, playing his first game in Miami since being traded to
Charlotte in August, led the Hornets with 31 points -- including 20
in the second half. Mashburn scored 30 when the teams played in
Charlotte on Nov. 3.
Hardaway was fouled on the ensuing possession and made both free
throws to tie it.
Charlotte had a final chance to win in regulation, but P.J.
Brown missed an 18-footer as time expired. Brown -- also returning
to Miami for the first time since the nine-player deal that brought
Jones, Grant and Mason to the Heat -- had four points and six
rebounds.
The Hornets led throughout the extra frame until Hardaway's
3-pointer from the top of the arc.
"I've seen Hardaway make that shot numerous times," Silas
said.
Elden Campbell, who had 15 points and 17 rebounds, attempted a
3-pointer as time expired, but his shot was way off the mark.
"We should have won this ball game," Mashburn said. "That's
the bottom line."
Game notes
Riley no longer expects free agent forward Joe Smith to
visit Miami. "I found out, and felt even after a day and a half,
that the possibilities were that he may not want to come here,"
Riley said before the game. "The only teams that he visited are
the teams that have room next year and can reward him with
something maybe he feels like he deserves." ... Heat forward Don
MacLean will be out 4-to-6 weeks after having surgery on his right
foot. ... Hardaway's 3-pointer in the first quarter extended
Miami's NBA record for consecutive games with a 3-pointer to 514.
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NBA Scoreboard
Charlotte Clubhouse
Miami Clubhouse
RECAPS
Atlanta 99
Portland 97
Cleveland 96
Golden State 86
Miami 89
Charlotte 86
Sacramento 96
Orlando 82
Houston 110
Chicago 83
San Antonio 86
Utah 79
Seattle 96
New York 75
LA Lakers 119
Denver 103
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