When: January 26, 2016; 7:30 PM EST
Where: Barclays Center; Brooklyn, NY
TV: YES Network
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
The last time these two teams played each other on December 28th, the Nets shocked the Heat with a 111-105 win in Miami on the strength of Wayne Ellington’s possible career-best shooting day. Ellington scored 26 points on 7-of-9 three-point shooting (with seven rebounds to boot) and was simply unstoppable down the stretch as the Nets were able to come back from a 14-point halftime deficit to one of their most surprising wins of the season. Brook Lopez also scored 26 points in the winning effort, mostly against Hassan Whiteside.
Now, the Nets and Heat meet in New York with both teams coming off losing skid-ending wins. Brooklyn took down the Oklahoma City Thunder by the score of 116-106 on Sunday night at Barclays Center in a game postponed for a few hours due to the weekend blizzard that hit the Eastern Seaboard. That win ended a five-game stretch for the Nets in which they went 0-5 and only looked competitive for a few quarters.
On the other hand, Miami — which has been without multiple key players lately due to injury — beat the Bulls in Chicago to end a four-game skid. The Heat have struggled since Hassan Whiteside (oblique) and Goran Dragic (calf) went down but they did get Luol Deng and Beno Udrih back for last night’s game. Miami is currently 7th in the East, tied with the Pistons and just a half-game up on the Pacers.
Probable lineups
MIA- Beno Udrih (PG), Dwyane Wade (SG), Luol Deng (SF), Chris Bosh (PF), Amar’e Stoudemire (C)
BKN- Donald Sloan (PG), Wayne Ellington (SG), Joe Johnson (SF), Thaddeus Young (PF), Brook Lopez (C)
Final thoughts
The Nets match up well with the undermanned Heat, especially at center, where Brook Lopez should be able to roast an over-the-hill Amar’e at the rim and on the post. But, Dwyane Wade could be a big problem for last meeting’s savior Wayne Ellington on the offensive end, as the 34-year-old can still score with the best of them. Anyway, it’s another good chance for the Nets to get a win against a injured team on the second night of a back-to-back.
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