Photo by: Heat.com

The Miami Heat faced the Washington Wizards again on Wednesday night. Unlike last time, the Heat were a little healthier in this one. Tyler Herro and Gabe Vincent were back in this one. Miami jumped to a huge 21-point lead in the third quarter. However, like we seen in recent games, the Heat allowed the opposing team to climbed back into the game. The Wizards cut the lead to three heading into the fourth quarter and briefly had the lead in the fourth period. In the end, the Heat were able to escape with the victory thanks to late heroics from Herro. With the win, Miami moves to 8-11 for the season. Here are my takeaways from the Heat’s win over the Wizards.

Strong First Half for Kyle Lowry

With the team facing so many injuries, Kyle Lowry has stepped up his game. He’s been playing huge minutes and leading the team in the team’s stars absence. Despite the losses, Lowry has been the one bright spot for Miami. Lowry continued his strong play on Wednesday night. He had a career-high 24 points in the first half against the Wizards. Lowry was hitting from downtown in the first half with five three-pointers. He also got into the paint a couple of times and drew fouls as well. This was the best we had seen from the Heat point guard in a long while. Lowry finished the night with 28 points and six rebounds.

Herro Back

After sitting out two weeks with the ankle injury, Herro was back in the Heat’s lineup. However, it was a uneven first half for him. He picked up two quick fouls in the first three minutes of the game. And later picked up his third in the second quarter. There was a scary moment when he landed hard on his side after a strong drive to the basket. The good news is he got back up on his own and walked it out. Herro later bounced back with a huge fourth quarter. He hit a couple of tough buckets to give the Heat’s offense life in the fourth quarter. Herro finished the night with 17 points, all scored in the second half.

Caleb Martin’s Night

It was a good night for Heat forward Caleb Martin, who played the small forward role in Jimmy Butler’s absence. This was the second straight game Martin has played in that role. Throughout the season, Martin has been used as the power forward with the team playing small ball. But on Wednesday night, he was back in a familiar role as the small forward. And unsurprisingly, he played very well. Instead of focusing on dribble handoffs, Martin was able to play with and without the basketball. He was a big part of the Heat’s offense early on with his slashing to the basket. Additionally, he played a huge role in keeping Miami afloat while the Wizards made a huge run. Martin finished the night with 24 points, nine rebounds, and two steals.

Third Quarter Issues

Once again, Miami built a huge lead on a team in the first half. They lead by as many as 21 points in the third quarter. But then, the Wizards came back in the third as the Heat’s offense got stagnant and took advantage of the Heat’s bad transition defense. Lately, this has been a recurring issue for the Heat. Losing a 20-point lead means the team is doing badly on both ends. Offensively, the basketball seems to be sticking a lot and not moving around. The team has a bad habit of going away from what built that huge lead. Given the injuries the team is suffering from, there’s little margin of error for this Heat team. They have to do a better job of holding on to their leads.

Next Up: The Washington Wizards on Friday. Game tips off at 8pm eastern.