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Rockets-Heat Preview

Feb 8, 2010 - 6:54 PM By MATT BECKER STATS Senior Writer

Houston (27-23) at Miami (24-27), 7:30 p.m. EDT

Dwyane Wade is struggling with his shooting touch and the losses are mounting for the Miami Heat.

The superstar guard had no such trouble with his shot in Houston just over three weeks ago.

Wade hopes to bounce back from another disappointing performance and help the Heat avoid losing their sixth straight Tuesday night when they host the Rockets.

Miami (24-27) is eighth in the Eastern Conference but hasn't played like a playoff-caliber team lately, losing seven of eight. Frustrated with the way things are going, Wade said the effort is "lagging" following Saturday's 95-91 loss to Chicago.

The Heat's sagging offense is largely responsible for this losing streak, scoring 86 points or fewer three times in the five games. Wade feels an unimaginative offense that is too predictable is to blame.

"We've got to find a way to mix it up," he said. "Everyone knows exactly what we're going to do."

Miami's offense goes through Wade, but the six-time All-Star hasn't been playing up to his normal standards.

Wade finished with 20 points Saturday but was 7 of 21 from the floor, the third time during the skid he shot less than 37.0 percent. He has been limited to 24 points or fewer in five of his last six games after scoring at least 32 in six of his previous nine. One of those high-scoring performances came in a 115-106 win in Houston on Jan. 15.

Wade had 37 points on 15-of-24 shooting as the Heat matched a season high in points while shooting 53.6 percent. Wade has had little trouble scoring in this series, averaging 30.6 points in five games since the 2007-08 season.

The Rockets, who haven't been swept in a season series by the Heat since 2005-06, arrive in Miami following Saturday's 102-95 loss to Philadelphia. Houston (27-23) scored 19 in both the third and fourth quarters to allow the 76ers to come back from a 13-point deficit.

Philadelphia's rally coincided with backup point guard Kyle Lowry leaving the game with a sprained left ankle. Lowry, who scored 14 points in 19 minutes, is expected to miss this contest.

"Kyle is our sparkplug and he relieves a lot of pressure off me and the other guys," Aaron Brooks said. "When he went out, it put a lot of pressure on everybody to step up."

Brooks carried Houston on Saturday, scoring 34 points with six 3-pointers. In his last five games, Brooks is averaging 26.8 points - 7.3 better than his season average.

"We can't just rely on Aaron," coach Rick Adelman said. "We have to have other people stepping up and they have to make plays."

Trevor Ariza has been getting more involved in Houston's offense but had only nine points on 3-of-9 shooting Saturday. He averaged 17.4 points in the previous five games and scored 15 against the Heat last month.