Cavaliers 85 - 92 Heat
Final
  for this game

Bosh, Heat hold off Cavs

Jan 25, 2012 - 4:37 AM Miami, FL (Sports Network) - Chris Bosh scored a season-high 35 points and the Miami Heat won another game without Dwyane Wade, holding off the Cleveland Cavaliers, 92-85, on Tuesday.

The Heat went 4-1 on a five-game homestand, playing each game without Wade as he deals with a sprained right ankle. They are 7-1 without the All-Star guard in the lineup this season.

"We're sticking with it," said Bosh. "This is one of those games where we had to overcome."

He did more than anyone to get Miami over the top.

Bosh buried a key three-pointer from the corner down the stretch and scored 17 of his points in the fourth quarter, while LeBron James got just two of his 18 points in the last 12 minutes.

Rookie Kyrie Irving kept Cleveland close down the stretch and finished with 17 points while Samardo Samuels scored 15 off the bench. But the Cavs fell to 1-4 against the Heat since James left to play for them before last season.

"A hard-fought effort, but we kind of beat ourselves out there," said Irving. "We had 22 turnovers and we lost by seven points. We weren't getting shots on 22 possessions."

There were 15 points scored and four timeouts called in the final minute of the game as the Cavs fought to even the score and the Heat held them off at the foul line.

Earlier, Bosh buried a three-pointer from the right corner to give Miami its largest lead of the game at 75-67.

"They kept coming to me and they showed trust in me," Bosh said of his teammates, "and I couldn't do it without them."

Irving cut the margin to three points on three separate trips down the floor, including twice in the last 13.3 seconds. Irving's three-pointer was followed by two Bosh free throws to make it 88-83, and the rookie's layup with 9.1 seconds left was countered by two Mario Chalmers foul shots to keep the Miami lead at five.

After Anthony Parker missed a three-point try, Udonis Haslem sealed the win for Miami with two more foul shots.

Bosh's previous season-high was 33 points at Atlanta on January 5. He finished 14-of-14 from the free throw line in this one, including 6-for-6 in the fourth quarter.

The Heat were 23-of-26 at the line as a team. They trailed 18-17 after the first quarter and pulled even, 37-37, at halftime before carrying a 61-58 lead into the fourth.

Game Notes

Wade has also missed time this season with a foot injury...The Heat were 3-1 against Cleveland last season after losing nine of the previous 10 games while James played for the Cavs...Cleveland out-shot Miami 50 percent to 45.7...The Heat are at Detroit on Wednesday, then back home for three straight games after that...Cleveland plays the Knicks at home on Wednesday.






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