Final
Sixers come full circle, beat Heat in finale
Apr 17, 2014 - 5:48 AMVideo
What happened in between the other 80 games defined a major difference between the two teams.
Thaddeus Young had 20 points and nine rebounds in Philadelphia's 100-87 triumph over the Heat in the regular season finale Wednesday night.
The Sixers (19-63), who began the campaign with a 114-110 win at home over the Heat on Oct. 30, suffered through a NBA record-tying 26-game losing streak this season.
Miami (54-28), the Southeast Division winners, rested regular starters LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Mario Chalmers. Dwyane Wade started and had 16 points.
The two-time defending NBA champions finished second in the East behind Indiana, and will take on the Charlotte Bobcats in the first round of the playoffs. The Heat have won 16 in a row during the regular season versus the Bobcats and will face them for the first time in the playoffs, beginning Sunday afternoon.
"They (Bobcats) deserve the respect of how the've played the last six weeks," said Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra. "They've been one of the better teams in the league, certainly in the Eastern Conference. They defend, give themselves a chance every night."
Michael Carter-Williams, a top candidate to win Rookie of the Year, totaled 12 points and six rebounds for the Sixers.
"I think we stayed together and came up with wins and just kept playing with each other," said Carter-Williams. "It takes a lot of character to do that, to not give up and let the season get out of hand. I applaud my teammates and coaches for that."
The Heat used a 22-7 spurt to take a 27-19 lead in the first quarter, but then trailed 29-27 after 12 minutes. Casper Ware's 3-pointer capped the 10-0 spurt to end the period.
Philadelphia went 10-of-14 from the field in the second to gain a 55-51 halftime edge.
Young's layup finished an 11-2 burst for a 69-59 lead at the midway point of the third, and the Sixers expanded the lead to 84-66 moving to the fourth. Miami was just 5-of-16 from the floor in the third.
The Heat got as close as seven in the fourth when Ray Allen's 3-pointer made it 89-82 with 7:08 remaining, but the Sixers scored the next six points.
Game Notes
Udonis Haslem corralled 10 boards for the Heat ... Toney Douglas scored 13 and Allen 11 for Miami, which shot 10-of-30 from 3-point range ... The Sixers shot 51.4 percent .. Miami's Shane Battier eclipsed 30,000 regular season minutes played over a 14-year NBA career ... The Sixers won for just the second time in the last 18 meetings.
Apr 16 10:31 PM- PHILADELPHIA: 84
MIAMI: 66
End of 3rd
Apr 16 9:58 PM - PHILADELPHIA: 55
MIAMI: 51
Halftime
Apr 16 9:13 PM - PHILADELPHIA: 29
MIAMI: 27
End of 1st
Apr 16 8:43 PM - PHILADELPHIA: 2
MIAMI: 0
1st Quarter - 11:45
Apr 16 8:14 PM
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