MIAMI _ This time the Miami Heat got rid of the blown double-digit deficit early, instead of waiting for the finish.
So, after melting late in mind-numbing losses earlier in the week against the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves, Erik Spoelstra's team gave itself the entire final quarter for redemption.
The result was a quality 126-118 victory Friday night over the Dallas Mavericks at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Opening the fourth quarter with a 13-0 surge after blowing a 12-point third-quarter lead, the Heat made their decisive run with All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo on the bench.
Instead, consecutive 3-pointers from Duncan Robinson, Kelly Olynyk and Jae Crowder provided the welcomed relief, a rally that also featured the unlikeliest of emphatic fast-break dunks from 36-year-old Andre Iguodala.
By the midpoint of the final period, the Heat again had a double-digit lead, this time at 115-101.
This time, the meltdown was _ somewhat _ minimized, although there was a 24-second violation with 1:45 left after Dallas closed within 119-111 and later a Kristaps Porzingis 3-pointer with 31.5 seconds left that drew the Mavericks within 122-116.
Butler led the Heat with 26 points, with Robinson scoring 24 and Goran Dragic and Kendrick Nunn 16 apiece.
Seth Curry led the Mavericks with a career-high 37 points, with Luka Doncic adding 23 points and 10 assists.
With Porzingis the only big man in Dallas' starting lineup, Spoelstra matched down, starting Derrick Jones Jr. in place of Kelly Olynyk.
Jones then opened defensively on Doncic, offering one of his best defensive performances of the season.
But it was Olynyk who provided spark both early and during the fourth-quarter rally, closing with 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, shooting 3 of 4 on 3-pointers.
With the Heat staging Slovenian Heritage night, a boisterous crowd saw featured attractions Doncic and Dragic open a combined 1 of 7 in their initial stints. Doncic's first points did not come until he scored with 4:57 left in the first half.
Doncic played with a wrap on his left thumb, twice having it re-wrapped. His frustration reached the point of a technical foul in the third quarter.
The hundreds of Slovenians in the crowd made it one of the most boisterous crowds of the season.
Butler came out in attack mode, with 14 first-half points. He was more engaged from the start, after a somewhat passive approach in Wednesday night's loss to the Timberwolves after missing two games for personal reasons.
He then returned midway through the fourth quarter to help close out the victory, albeit with a few shaky moments.
After largely moving away from the approach, the Heat revived their zone in the first period and mixed it in throughout. As they are wont to do, the Mavericks often went to the alignment, as well.
While the Mavericks had success against the alignment, it allowed Spoelstra to keep Robinson on the court and create less-taxing minutes for Iguodala.
While the offense was off, Adebayo (14 points, 11 rebounds) nonetheless worked his way to his team-leading 35th double-double of the season.
