INDIANAPOLIS — You start here: Any victory in the absence of Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo is a big victory.
Especially when entering on a two-game losing streak.
Especially with the defending-champion Milwaukee Bucks up next on Saturday, on the second night of this road back-to-back set.
So it hardly mattered that the Indiana Pacers entered at 9-15, on a three-game losing streak and rallied late.
What mattered Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse is that the short-handed Heat found a way — at times unique ways — in their 113-104 victory.
It was Kyle Lowry with 20 of his season-high 26 points in the first half, Duncan Robinson making his first two 3-pointers on the way to 24 points, and Tyler Herro adding a needed third scoring component with 18 points.
And it also was Udonis Haslem early, and, most surprisingly, Omer Yurtseven late, as a quality presence anchoring the zone defense, with the rookie big man closing with a season-high 12 points.
Five Degrees of Heat from Friday night’s game:
1. Closing time: As with so many Heat road games this season, there was a big lead late that turned into not such a big lead, the Heat going from up 20 with 5:36 to play to a 108-97 lead with 3:14 left after a Malcolm Brogdon 3-pointer.
From there, during a disputed possession play, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra and Heat forward P.J. Tucker each were called for technical fouls with 42.1 seconds to go. Even with the Heat winning the replay challenge, Brogdon got to shoot the technical free throws, making both to draw Indiana within 110-101.
A Gabe Vincent 3-pointer with 30.5 seconds the effectively ended it.
2. Bounce back: A game after Robinson’s streak of consecutive games with a 3-pointer ended at 69, he made his first two attempts and closed the first period 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.
With Robinson scoring 14 in the first quarter, including a driving floater, the Heat moved to a 13-point lead in the opening period before taking a 32-25 lead into the second.
The 14 points were the most in a quarter by Robinson this season.
3. Lowry, too: Lowry had 11 points in the game’s first 5:35, with three 3-pointers in the first period. He was up to 20 points at the intermission, 4 of 8 on 3-pointers at that stage.
Lowry was coming off a seven-point performance, when he shot 2 of 9 in Wednesday night’s home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
4. And Herro: Starting in place of Butler, Herro again offered the type of shot creation otherwise lacking, often while playing against Pacers traps and double teams.
Herro’s presence was particularly significant when Lowry dared take a rest.
5. Rotation roulette: With Butler with his bruised tailbone and Adebayo awaiting weekend thumb surgery, Spoelstra again opened with Robinson, Lowry, Herro, Dewayne Dedmon and Tucker in the starting lineup.
But it then got interesting after Vincent entered as sixth man. Not only did Haslem play as the first big man off the bench, but Yurtseven then entered at the start of the second period.
At one point, the Heat in the second period had a lineup with Herro flanked by Yurtseven, Vincent, Max Strus and Caleb Martin.
With the exception of KZ Okpala, every available option was utilized in the power rotation, on an uneven night from Dedmon.
