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Heat close out homestand by hosting Bobcats

Nov 19, 2010 - 3:50 PM (Sports Network) - The Miami Heat will close out a six-game homestand tonight versus the Southeast Division-rival Charlotte Bobcats.

Miami has won two in a row and improved to 3-2 on the residency when Chris Bosh got into the scoring act with a season-high 35 points on 12-of-17 shooting and sank all 11 of his free throws in Wednesday's 123-96 win over the Phoenix Suns at AmericanAirlines Arena. Bosh has shot at least 50 percent from the floor over his last six games.

"We weren't expecting that result," said Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra. "We just wanted to focus on our game, our energy and really having that defensive edge to us again. That is one of the most challenging teams to defend."

LeBron James delivered 20 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, while Dwyane Wade added 17 points for the Heat, who shot 54.7 percent from the floor and finished with a 42-32 edge on the boards. James has at least one steal in eight consecutive games, and a team-high 21 this season. He has also notched five double-doubles in his last seven games.

Miami used a 24-9 run in the first half to help end Phoenix's three-game winning streak. It is 5-2 in south Florida this season.

Charlotte has won three of four games and is aiming for its third straight road win Friday night in a tough environment.

The Bobcats posted a 113-110 win versus Minnesota on Monday, as Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace both finished with 26 points to lead the way. Tyrus Thomas had a busy night with 20 points and 10 rebounds, while D.J. Augustin added nine points and 11 assists in the win.

"I feel real confident in myself and I know what I can do. At the beginning of games I can see how much guys are going to let me get away with," said Jackson, who is averaging 19.7 points over his last nine games. "I saw they didn't want to guard me and Gerald (Wallace) and that we could probably get anything we wanted on offense."

Charlotte closed the game with 14-3 run after trailing 107-99 with 2:07 to play, while Augustin has recorded double-figure assist totals in three straight games. Wallace has recorded double-doubles in four of his last eight games, averaging 18.6 points and 9.1 rebounds in that span.

The Bobcats are 3-3 away from home this season and may not have guard Gerald Henderson for tonight's game because of a sore knee. He is questionable. Bobcats center Kwame Brown made his debut against the Timberwolves and had three points, three blocks and three rebounds. The former No. 1 overall pick of Washington back in 2001 was dealing with an injured ankle this summer.

Charlotte took three of four meetings with Miami last season. It has lost nine of the 12 matchups in south Florida.