The Miami Heat survived and forced a seventh game with their 97-90 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Friday.
The win came in Charlotte's building and gives Miami back its home-court advantage. Much like during the regular season, both teams have won on the road in the series.
Miami held a nine-point lead at halftime thanks mostly to a strong percentage on three-pointers. The Heat shot 80% as a team on treys in the first half and 60 percent overall on their field goal attempts.
The third quarter featured very competitive basketball with Charlotte ending up with a four-point advantage. Miami would take a five-point lead into the final quarter of play.
Miami stretched its lead to nine in the fourth quarter, but Charlotte would fight back. With roughly five minutes to go, the deficit was only four and Miami was forced to take a timeout. The Heat looked better after those few minutes and were able to put the game away.
Dwyane Wade led Miami in scoring with his 23 points. The All-Star also added six rebounds and four assists. Wade would hit a big basket down in the final seconds as well.
Once again, all of Miami's starters reached double digits in points. The team did a great job of moving the ball and involving everyone. Miami as a team had 13 assists, and every starter with the exception of Hassan Whiteside had at least one assist.
The Heat and Hornets will head back to Miami for the seventh and final game of the series on Sunday.
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Courtesy of our news partners at NBCMiami.com.
