NBA Power Rankings: The Heat are looking good

The Heat continued their recent stretch of winning close games, pulling off a seven-game win streak that included victories over the Raptors and Pacers, both on the road, this week. Wayne Ellington was the hero of the game Tuesday in Toronto, making a last second layup to win the game 90-89. Bam Adebayo was a monster in 33 minutes off the bench, with 16 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocked shots. James Johnson and Serge Ibaka had a little scuffle in the game, throwing punches at each other, a decision that resulted in suspensions for both players by the league. The Heat and Raptors combined for 26 blocked shots in the game, the highest combined total blocks in a game so far this season, according to Basketball-Reference.

The bench stepped up against the Pacers for the Heat, with Adebayo, Ellington, and Tyler Johnson combining for 45 points in a 114-106 victory. It was another game for Miami that came down to the wire, but they hit tough shots and executed late when it counted. The Heat kept up their winning ways, knocking off Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in Miami, 97-79. Goran Dragic had 11 consecutive points for Miami in the fourth quarter, and they held Milwaukee to 36 percent shooting from the field to improve to eight games over .500 with 40 games remaining before the playoffs start. Nobody say anything, but the Heat are the four seed, and don’t look to be slowing down, even after losing Dion Waiters to season-ending ankle surgery.