Mateo’s Hoop Diary: The Heat shellac the Hornets on Dwyane Wade’s Hall of Fame night

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On Dwyane Wade’s Hall of Fame night at Kaseya Center, Jimmy Butler’s understudy- Jaime Jaquez Jr.- oppressed the inferior Charlotte Hornets early, and Bam Adebayo took charge in the second half. The former scored 15 of the hosts’ first 22 points, finishing on the break, isolating PJ Washington for a layup and hooking in the lane over the mismatch. It was the highest-scoring quarter of his rookie season. (Butler was absent for the Heat (toe injury). The Hornets were missing Gordon Hayward (hurt calf) and Mark Williams (back).

Herro was off-target, producing just three points, but picked up four rebounds. And Adebayo hit a fade away in the lane and rolled for a lob after the handoff with Duncan Robinson.

For Charlotte, the high Hornet early was plea-copper Miles Bridges with eight on his scorecard. The rest of the group made two of 18 field goals as the Heat held the visitors to 16-first quarter points.

In the second frame, Ball failed to score against the Heat’s backline and was baited into deep jumpers. Heat play-by-play broadcaster Eric Reid said he was playing “unhinged.” Before the period was up, he committed two turnovers- pushing off Josh Richardson’s face and tossing the rock out of bounds instead of to Bryce McGowens- plus failing on a miserable pull-up 24-footer that his team couldn’t rebound.

Additionally, all eight 3-point attempts the Hornets hoisted were contested and it converted a sparse 33% of tries in the restricted area.

For the Heat, Duncan Robinson stripped Cody Martin and raced down the court, hitting a floater between two defenders, connected on another fastbreak layup fed by Nikola Jović and splashed a left-wing trifecta when left unchaperoned. He also had three assists, working the give-and-go action with Adebayo and finding Jović and Herro with space behind the arc in transition.

JJJ played just four minutes in the second quarter because he injured his left groin and missed the rest of the match.

At halftime, the Heat held a 52-31 advantage with 14 fastbreak points and 13 via turnovers. During the break, Wade was honored at center court as the greatest Heatle in the organization’s history by Pat Riley, who revealed his eight-foot statue is coming in the fall.

In the third quarter, the Heat saw a different Ball. He dropped 14 points ruthlessly attacking the interior and made a pair of triples. Bridges complimented him with a layup after getting loose behind a flare screen and two jumpers on the left side.

Yet on offense, Herro swished a transition 3-pointer, invaded the paint when the Hornets broke down and beat Washington + Ball going downhill.

The only thing that threatened the hosts was picking up six turnovers in the third because of poor passing and an illegal screen by Jović.

The fourth began with the Heatles above 16 points. Charlotte’s Terry Rozier emptied the tank, adding 11 to his scoring log. Ball contributed five more, and Bridges was held to zero field goals late.

On the other side, Adebayo, Robinson and Richardson combined for nine of 15 baskets- at close and long range-powering the club to victory.

The Heat won 104-87, never allowing the Hornets to take the lead. The Miami squad registered 58 paint points, 25 on the break and 17 off turnovers. On top of that, the Heat added 8.4 points per 100 transition plays, good enough for the 90th percentile of all games this season, per Cleaning the Glass.

After the game, Wade shared a moment with Butler and Adebayo on the court.

Adebayo handled the on-court interview, expressing pride for being a part of the later part of Wade’s career. On the topic of the statue, he said, “You can’t do anything but soak in knowledge from a guy like that… [The] best thing is for me to pay attention.”

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra claimed he was surprised by Riley’s announcement. “[Riley] dropped the mic on that one. He shocked all of us…”

Tua Tagovailoa says he doesn't feel pressure going into next season on the final year of his contract.

Pressure Point: Dolphins’ collapse raises questions about future with Tagovailoa

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A season that showed potential to be something special for the Miami Dolphins ended the same place as every other one this century.

On the trash heap.

Surprisingly it was Mike McDaniel’s highly acclaimed offense and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa that led the way to the dumpster, culminating in a noncompetitive 26-7 wild-card loss at frigid Kansas City on Saturday night.

Would have been difficult to imagine when the Dolphins were dropping 70 points on the Broncos in the third week of the season and Tagovailoa was on his way to leading the NFL in passing yards.

Rarely have grandiose — even historic — stats added up to so little. Because although Tua amassed Marino-like passing numbers and earned his first Pro Bowl selection, the true measure of his season was in how he and the offense came up short against teams that reached the playoffs.

The Dolphins went 1-6 in games against the Bills (twice), Eagles, Chiefs (twice) and Ravens. In those games they scored 20, 17, 14, 22, 19, 14 and 7 points.

Tua shrunk in biggest games

Notably, in the three season-ending losses Tagovailoa had his worst passer ratings of the season: 71.9 against the Ravens, 62.7 against the Bills and 63.9 against the Chiefs. He had four touchdown passes and five interceptions in that stretch.

In each of those games his performance paled in comparison to the opposing quarterback — Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes.

If this comes across as a harsh assessment, consider that a big topic of the Dolphins’ offseason will be if or when they will pursue a long-term contract extension with their quarterback. Tua is due to make $23.1 million in 2024, the final season of his rookie contract.

The going rate for top quarterbacks these days is north of $50 million a year.

The Dolphins may wait until after next season to decide whether to offer Tua a new contract. Whenever that may occur, his agent can point to an impressive array of stats in building a case that he belongs in that category.

To be sure, Tua accomplished a lot this season and provided some dazzling moments, particularly in spectacular connections with Tyreek Hill. He finished with a league-leading 4,634 yards, 29 touchdown passes and a passer rating of 101.1.

Significantly, for the first time in his career he started every game and didn’t miss any time due to injury. He led Miami to an 11-7 record and its second consecutive playoff appearance.

Fins still winless in playoffs since 2000

But the season cannot be considered a success — and this burden ultimately rests with the head coach — after the Dolphins squandered a three-game lead in the AFC East in the final five weeks and ended with another one-sided loss on the road in the first round up the playoffs.

The Dolphins are now 0-6 since their last playoff win in 2000 while being outscored 164-62. Even the 2000 team got rolled the next week 27-0 by the Raiders. The only game that was even close was the 34-31 loss last year at Buffalo.

It is in that context that the disappointment of this season is magnified: nearly a quarter century without a single win in the playoffs. The cast of players, coaches and decision makers keeps changing, yet the path always leads back to the same crossroad to nowhere.

The latest roster overhaul begun in 2019 was going to finally fix that. The Dolphins were going to find their franchise quarterback, by golly, and a coach to break the chain of lost seasons.

That quest seemed to be coming together in the first 12 games of this season with Tua leading McDaniel’s innovative offense that was the talk of the league. But production diminished late in the season, particularly against the better teams.

Will Miami pursue extension for Tagovailoa?

Ultimately, that 70-20 trouncing of the Broncos and feel-good routs of other middling teams served only as build up to a bigger letdown.

“We were definitely expecting us to be a really good team this year. We definitely weren’t expecting a first-round exit,” Tyreek Hill said after the season-ending loss to the Chiefs.

Now the franchise reverts to another juncture of uncertainty about the future and troubling questions arise entering the offseason. Is Tagovailoa the right quarterback to invest in long term? Is McDaniel the coach to lead the way out of the wilderness?

Not that either is headed out the door. But it is understandable that patience is thin. The NFL is all about results right now. That has become expected of young quarterbacks more than ever in recent years.

Mahomes rocketed to immediate stardom. C.J. Stroud made an immediate impact for the Texans as a rookie this season and already has a resounding playoff win under his belt.

At his best, Tagovailoa is a remarkably accurate passer. He remained healthy all season and improved his record as a starter to 32-19. But his struggles against the better teams is troubling. His record in December and January games is 10-11.

In mulling whether to make a potential $250 million investment in Tua, the Dolphins must assess whether he is a quarterback who can just get them to the playoffs or can he elevate his game to win in the postseason.

Re-signing Wilkins should be top priority for Dolphins

The aftermath of a season that promised much more than it ultimately delivered will bring other immediate challenges on personnel matters. Most important, defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, coming off a monster season, can become an unrestricted free agent.

On the bright side, Wilkins said after Saturday’s loss that he would like to stay with the Dolphins. It remains to be seen where the money and ambition leads.

Hill said: “Unfortunately, every locker room is going to be different every year, salary cap and guys wanting to get paid and going other places. I feel in my heart that if this team were to come back together this is the right group of people to win. We got everything what it takes. You can see that the defense came along, and as an offense, we have to be able to put drives together and help those guys out.

“We just can’t be a bunch of front-runners. Next year I feel like we’ll learn from it.”

For the Dolphins, hope always points to next year.

Craig Davis has covered South Florida sports and teams, including the Dolphins, for four decades. Follow him on the site formerly known as Twitter @CraigDavisRuns.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Adebayo, Robinson and Jaquez lead the Heat past the Mystical Ones

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The blossoming Orlando Magic’s defensive pressure put the Heat’s attack in the mud early and kept the game close the whole way. After Duncan Robinson seemingly unbuttoned the offense with consecutive triples against the drop and the Magic overhelping on Bam Adebayo in the post, the hosts endured five minutes recording just two field goals. But then Robinson set Adebayo up with a pick-and-pop jumper at the nail, and Josh Richardson scored the last two baskets of the first.

On the other side, Paolo Banchero rattled off seven points, Chuma Okeke stung from the corner, and Jalen Suggs ruined the Heat’s offense with help defense and three blocks on Robinson.

In the second quarter, Adebayo continued feeding cutters, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. abused each Magic defender in his path. The rook looked like a mini Kevin McHale, pivoting past them for a layup on the baseline, then breaking down Banchero from the top to the cup and finishing three baskets on the break with no misses in six tries.

Defensively, the Heat struggled to contain Moritz Wagner’s mobility (at 6-foot-11) after the switch, conceding the baseline, a rim roll and a putback. Additionally, Caleb Houstan poured in three triples- Jaquez couldn’t shade and recover on time after the screen and no one tagged him in transition after Nikola Jovic’s turnover. The one in between was nailed with Jović practically breathing on him.

At halftime, the hosts led 56-50, up on the glass by two, with 28 paint points, 12 on the break, eight off turnovers and five via second chances. Robinson had 14 on his scorecard on five of 11 attempts. Jaquez logged 15 on 70% shooting.

In the third quarter, both units upped their defensive pressure. The Heat quickly recovered onto Banchero on the wing to successfully contest his wing jumper, Jaquez forced him into an 11-foot miss on the baseline, and Adebayo, coming in as the helper, spiked his layup away. And the Magic permitted the Heat only six of 20 shots to fall. Adebayo registered three, attacking Goga Bitadze twice in the lane and cleaning up JJJ’s miss for a putback.

Next, coach Erik Spoelstra stashed Jović for Caleb Martin and Richardson. The Heat binged on baskets inside the arc (eight of 13), mainly behind the work of Adebayo schooling Wagner and Robinson getting into the lane with the help of the screen. But the squad committed four turnovers trying to pull off dangerous passes and losing it on the wing, blessing the Magic with extra possessions.

Wagner produced eight points on a rim roll, back door cut and pump-faking Adebayo at the top of the key to get inside for a layup.

Banchero scored 10 points on three of 10 tries late. With 39 seconds left, he dribbled to the right baseline, covered by Jaquez and hit a 15-footer to give the Magic a one-point advantage.

Following the Heat’s timeout, the Magic had one plan: get it to Banchero. The difference at the end was JJJ, Adebayo and Highsmith guarding his jumper and influencing misses on his last three attempts. And, at 18 seconds left, Adebayo caught the inbound and pulled up at the nail in front of Wagner to take the lead.

The Heat won 99-96, with an edge on the boards by three and taking one more field goal. Adebayo supplied 21 points with 11 rebounds and seven dimes. Robinson scored 23, making four of 10 trifectas. And JJJ had 19 points with seven rebounds.

At the on-court interview, Robinson said the games had a “grind it out” finish. “No matter if it’s pretty ugly or somewhere in between…[We] had some real stretches where we showed resolve and found a way to get out a win.”

At the postgame presser, when asked about Adebayo, Spoelstra said, “He had his fingerprints all over this game. Defensively, he was anchoring everything. We had him, sometimes on the five (center), sometimes on the perimeter. If he was on the perimeter, he was there to plug everything up…”

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Jaylen celebrates after scoring the clinching touchdown for the Miami Dolphins in the win against the New Orleans Saints.

For the Dolphins…. you’re saying there’s a chance?

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With the Miami Dolphins now 4.5 point underdogs in one of the soon-to-be coldest weather games in NFL History, their chances of coming out of Kansas City still alive in the Wildcard Round are not looking good.

It’s true, on the surface, the trusted stock in the Miami Dolphins is down right now after losing the division crown to the rival Buffalo Bills who seem to always have their number.

Mike McDaniel looks like a coach that can’t make halftime adjustments.

Tua Tagovailoa looks like a quarterback who can’t win a big game.

And Tyreek Hill seems to get a case of the dropsies whenever these big games arrive.

On defense, the Dolphins are banged up entering this game.

They will be without their high-profile cornerback Xavien Howard (foot) which will leave Eli Apple on the opposite side of star Jalen Ramsey. Kader Kohou will likely be in the slot.

The pass rushing unit has taken a huge hit this year. LB Jaelan Phillips tore his Achilles versus the Jets, LB Bradley Chubb suffered a torn ACL on New Year’s Eve, and LB Andrew Van Ginkle hurt his foot
in the team’s regular season finale. LB Jerome Baker, who is an adequate blitzed, hurt his wrist and will require surgery. None will be available to chase down Patrick Mahomes in Arrowhead Stadium.

 

*******

But the Dolphins have a secret weapon on defense for this game — experience.

And not just any type of experience.

Experience from 3 longtime veterans who have totaled 243 sacks collectively in their careers. And although they are relatively new to the team, Melvin Ingram, Justin Houston, and Bruce Irvin all have experience chasing after Patrick Mahomes.

Ingram did it when he was a member of the Chargers.

Justin Houston sacked Mahomes as a member of the Colts.

And Bruce Irvin claims he sacked Mahomes twice as a member of the Raiders, but he may have mistakenly meant Alex Smith.

Houston and Irvin who both joined the team this week say they’ve played in similar defensive systems like defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s system, so they believe they can get acclimated quickly.
Houston still sees himself as a pass rusher, and Irvin says he moves faster than his 36-year age. The Dolphins are hoping all 3 veterans have enough left in the tank, and can combine their football knowledge to make a difference not just for this game, but for the rest of the postseason should the team win on Saturday.

But despite the injuries, the Miami Dolphins still have a chance in this game, but that all depends on if they can fix what has ailed them in the final two weeks of the regular season.

The defense has been competitive, and they showed it last week when they only allowed a total of two touchdowns to the Bills.

The Chiefs receiving corps doesn’t offer much of a threat, but Mahomes’ improvising and Andy Reid’s ability to whip out the tricks during this time of the year does. Look for misdirection and the
occasional trick play. Also, the Dolphins secondary has been exposed on drag plays across the field when they played the Ravens, and the Chiefs offense is more horizontal this year than vertical, so look for
Reid to utilize some of those play calls when he has good matchups. I’d expect tight end Travis Kelce to feast off of these catches with Miami’s linebacking unit and safeties banged up.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins front-7 needs to continue their ferocity keep Chiefs running back Isaiah Pacheco, from violently running downfield. The Fins defense has suffered a lot of injuries, but that’s actually one aspect that doesn’t concern me too much. Defensive tackles Christian Wilkins, Zach Seiler, and run-stuffing linebacker David Long Jr. are still around to lead the charge.

What McDaniel cannot do is get away from the run too early before the Chiefs learn to stop it.

Tua Tagovailoa, with Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, had an uncharacteristically poor performance in the loss against San Francisco.

After grinding down the clock with the run on their final drive and kicking their way to victory over the Cowboys on Christmas Eve, the Dolphins picked up where they left off in Week 18 versus the Bills.
The Fins ran the ball for over 100 yards in the first half, but went away from it in the 2nd half when the Bills decided to give McDaniel looks that were intended to stuff the run. However, McDaniel ditched
the run game before the Bills ever actually proved that they could stop it. This got the Dolphins offense into trouble and led to a bunch of short drives and punts, which allowed the Bills to get back into
the game and take the lead. McDaniel needs to stick with the run game until the Chiefs prove they can stop it.

The Dolphins are better at running the ball than the Chiefs are defending it. So using running backs De’Von Achane and Jeff Wilson Jr. is imperative considering the elements. If Raheem Mostert, who is
listed as questionable and has over 20 touchdowns for the season can play in this game, that will be bode very well for this offense. All of these backs can catch, and McDaniel and Tua need to remember that when they have these speedsters mismatched on Kansas City’s talented linebackers.

The offensive line has been riddled with injuries, but still playing quite well when it comes to the run blocking and giving quarterback Tua a pocket. Tua continues to avoid the sacks while getting the ball
out quickly, but still must prove he can go off script and make something happen when the team needs it in crunch time. Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnulo has playcalled in a lot of big-time games throughout his career, and this game will be no different. Knowing that Tua isn’t the best escape-artist, I’d expected Spagnulo to blitz quite often while hoping to get the Dolphins offense in as many 3rd & long situations as possible. Considering the freezing temperatures, and the hardening of the football, throwing it deep probably isn’t the best option for Miami offense or when facing the Chiefs’  secondary. I would like to see more crossers and drag routes to see if Spangulo’s cornerbacks can keep up versus Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle’s presumed return.

What the Dolphins cannot allow is a big return or some kind of foul up on Special Teams.

Coming out of halftime versus the Ravens, the Dolphins allowed a kickoff return for a big return — demoralizing.

Against the Bills, after the defense got a stop — Dolphins special teams unit allowed a punt return for a touchdown to allow the Bills to tie the game 14-14. The Dolphins kickoff and punt coverage unit cannot allow short fields or easy scores to the Chiefs in a game with extreme elements where field position could be vital for victory.

 

 

******

Key to Victory: Take the lead and Pull Away

In Arrowhead Stadium, there has been too much Mahomes Magic at this time of year. This Chiefs team is beatable, but to avoid any miraculous late-game magic or dagger killing drives by Patrick
Mahomes, the Dolphins have to get off with fast start (like they usually do) and pull away. None of the cute Mike McDaniel attempting to go for it on 4th-down early in the game despite being in field goal
position — No. Take the easy points, and when you go down the field again, tack on some more points. Because this team has shown time and time again that they are a first half team in games versus playoff contenders, and they shown to little to prove that said problem is fixed.

You want to beat Mahomes?

Play smart, stop him early, tack on multiple scores, and keep the lead out of reach of his magic and Andy Reid’s creative play calling.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Repairing the Nuggets and Carmelo Anthony’s relationship is overdue

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Carmelo Anthony wears his heart on his sleeve, so he couldn’t help himself from T-ing off on the 7AM in Brooklyn podcast when discussing a subject that stuns a nerve. The matter at hand? He fears being forgotten by future generations because Nikola Jokić, the reigning Finals MVP, dons #15.

“They want you to play that game when you think of #15 in Denver. Now, to this generation, you think of Joker…” Anthony said.

In reality, the cowtown a mile above sea level wasn’t good enough for Anthony. So he demanded a trade to the New York Knicks, never breaking the Nuggets’ dry spell of not reaching the NBA Finals (until the 2023 outfit did). But the Finals? Anthony made a West Finals once in Denver and wants honorary treatment for scoring a bunch of points.

The funny thing is, he should get it. Despite that one time he refused to check back into a game in Detroit, or how he didn’t work hard enough on defense or the glass (averaged 6.3 per game as a Nugget). It can’t be forgotten how he cost his group with a 15-match suspension, going 7-8 without him for the melee in Madison Square Garden (six straight lost in between). On top of that, he said he was a “Knick at heart.”

Yet, Anthony is still one of the organization’s top contributors ever. But his approach is wrong. He has incorrectly interpreted Jokić wearing #15 as disrespect, but the Serbian center, who was picked 41st in round two of Draft night, during a Taco Bell ad and didn’t have the highest expectations from most hoop observers, has worn that number forever.

“I believe they gave him #15 to try to erase what I did…” Anthony said.

This is a terrible misunderstanding that won’t ingratiate himself to younger fans who missed out on his game, the ones he pissed off, and/or to the Kroenke family. He’s wrong in his thinking, but he still deserves respect from Denverites. Anthony hasn’t logged a minute for the Nuggets since Feb. 22, 2011, but he’s still 11th in games played; sixth in logged 3-pointers; fifth in rebounds (Someone alert George Karl); fourth in points, minutes; and second in converted free throws.

Relations can be saved by retiring #15 for Anthony and Jokić when the latter joins him in retirement. The New York Knicks honored Hall of Famers Earl Monroe and Dick McGuire, and they both share #15.

Who could forget Anthony, in baggy shorts, lobbing on the break over Yao Ming? What kind of Nuggets supporter will ignore how he and Chauncey Billups took over in the fourth quarter in Game 3 @ Dallas in 2009? Or how in his time in Denver, the team never missed the Playoffs when it had won 44 combined games in the two seasons before his arrival?

Alex English advanced to one conference final out of 16 series with the Nuggets.

Fat Lever made it to the Western Conference Finals on one occasion against 10 teams.

Byron Beck was with the Denver Rockets before they turned into the Nuggets, playing in 13 series and reaching the ABA Finals in 1976.

Skywalker David Thompson registered seven rounds and led the ABA Nuggets to the Finals in 1976 and then to the NBA’s WCF in 1978.

The “Horse” Dan Issel participated in 13 Playoff encounters and was on the ‘76 squad that reached the ABA Finals

Dikembe Mutombo left the first round once in five seasons as a Nugget -when he was on the eighth-seeded group that took out the Seattle Supersonics in five games in round one.

Doug Moe was an assistant for two years, made a pit stop in San Antonio, and subsequently returned and instructed the squad to 432 wins from 1980-90 and was coach of the year in 1988.

Anthony’s time in Denver peaked in 2009, the only instance he led them out of the first round, and when the unit fell off after five games to the Los Angeles Lakers in the WCF. Enough years have passed and one side should extend an olive branch to the other because it’s long overdue that Anthony is a member of the Nuggets family.

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Panthers’ Stars Shine During Eight-Game Winning Streak

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The Florida Panthers keep on rolling.

 

Since the end of December, the Panthers have played their best hockey of the season.

 

After Tuesday night’s commanding 5-1 win in St. Louis, Florida extended their season best winning streak to eight games — with the past four coming on the road against Western Conference opponents. 

 

The Panthers last loss came on Dec. 21, ironically, it was to the St. Louis Blues. That 4-1 defeat in Sunrise was Florida’s fourth loss in their last five games. To make matters worse, they had scored just two goals over those four losses. 


Sitting at 18-12-2, with a decent string of losses under their belt, the schedule ahead didn’t look to be any more forgiving for the Panthers. The defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights return to Sunrise was next on the skid. 

 

But the Panthers didn’t waver when the guys who “ruined their summer” came to town — defeating them 4-2 in what could be looked back on as a statement win for the Cats.

 

Back to the present, the Panthers picked up seven straight wins after Vegas, defeating many of the league’s better teams like the Avalanche, Rangers, Lightning, and Knights again.

 

“I think we were struggling a bit, both mentally and physically through the grind. Getting back from those two long road trips in December,” Sam Reinhart said last weekend. “It was nice to be able to regroup over Christmas and come out strong.”

 

Florida now has 54 points, with a 26-12-2 record. They are just one game back of Boston for first in the East.

 

They are in a spectacular position at this point of the season, and there should be even more satisfaction considering last season they were 11th in the East on January 9th last season, with just 40 points in 41 games. They’d still end up making it to the Stanley Cup Final despite the bad start. 

 

So what’s clicked over the win streak? 

 

Well, a huge jolt has come from Matthew Tkachuk, who completely flipped the switch since the streak began.

 

Tkachuk had a slower start than what was initially expected of the superstar who was coming off a 109 point regular season and an unbelievable playoff run. But, it would be a disservice to Tkachuk if we didn’t acknowledge that he had broken his sternum, and played through it, back in June during the Stanley Cup Final. 

 

Prior to the Dec. 23 contest against the Knights, Tkachuk had just 22 points in 32 games — a bit alarming for last season’s Hart Trophy Finalist. Since that night, which began Florida’s winning streak, Tkachuk leads the Panthers in scoring with 17 points over the last eight games. 

 

“I haven’t changed anything. Maybe they’re just going in a little bit more,” Tkachuk told Bally Sports’ Katie Engelson.  “I haven’t changed one thing with my routine or how I prepare for games. I guess I was just waiting to get to 2024.”

 

He quickly clawed up to 39 points in 40 games — picking up a natural hat trick in his latest outing against his hometown Blues. But, Tkachuk is not the only Panther to shine of late.

 

While Tkachuk has been stacking points, Sam Reinhart has continued to fill the net with pucks.

 

Reinhart has led the Panthers in goals virtually the entire season and the 28-year-old forward has shown no signs of slowing down.

 

During the eight-game win streak, Reinhart scored 11 goals, putting him at 29 on the season — second most in the NHL. 

 

Reinhart is on pace to shatter his previous career high of 33 goals — whilst in the middle of a contract year. 

 

Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe have both had great offensive numbers as well. They both grabbed 14 points in their last eight, with Verhaeghe riding a six game point streak. 

 

Now just one game shy of the halfway mark of the season, the Panthers are currently tied for the longest active winning streak in hockey (Edmonton, 8). 

 

Everything is clicking for Florida at the moment. Their stars are performing at an elite level, both goaltenders have been more than solid and they have picked up five of their last eight wins on the road. 

 

The Panthers will return to Sunrise for the first time since the new year and they’ll be more than happy as nine of their next 12 games are at home.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: The Heat offense runs smoothly with Jović as the triggerman

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Coach Erik Spoelstra is teasing the transition-starved fan base by using Nikola Jović as the playmaker during Jimmy Butler (toe injury) and Caleb Martin’s (ankle sprain) absence. The Serbian kid, who didn’t even have his high school diploma on draft night, is the best on the team at running the break and his tools create devastation on defense.

Early, Jović shot poorly, registering only one layup in the open court with three misses at close range and behind the arc. But he recovered seven rebounds, three of which were offensive, and set up Jaime Jaquez Jr. under the basket in transition, tipped a loose ball to Herro on the left side plus, used the dribble handoff at the top to create space for Herro and Duncan Robinson’s trifectas.

Vintage Kevin Love backed down Jae’Sean Tate, canned a 3-pointer behind a pindown and made two free throws, piling on to the Heat’s blazing first frame.

On the other side, the defense wasn’t as strong. Houston’s Fred VanVleet nailed a 25-footer with Jović, who is 11 inches taller, all over him, another at the left wing when Josh Richardson doubled to Alperen Şengün in the post and one at the elbow as Bam Adebayo dropped. Additionally, the club inflicted four of nine triples to start.

In the second quarter, the hosts could barely convert from deep but managed 12 free throw attempts and logged 67% of its two-pointers. In this period, the defense slipped, allowing six of 11 triples to fall.

At halftime, the game was tied at 59. The Heat were ahead by four on the glass, with 24 points coming in the paint, four off second chances and five off turnovers.

In the third quarter, Herro connected on three triples- one assisted by a Jović DHO on the left wing, a straight-away jumper at the top of the key, and another set up by Jović on the break. Adebayo was perfect on four paint shots. And Jović had his finest spurt of the season, hustling for loose balls to set up the break and pulling up for one trifecta.

On defense, despite permitting two deep looks that missed, the Heat contested two of seven triples cleanly.

The Heat entered the fourth quarter ahead by nine, and Adebayo’s production carried the group until the finish line. First, he contested Jabari Smith’s 3-pointer and was first in the open court, receiving the outlet pass from Robinson for a two-handed jam. He also hit a jumper at the nail, rolled to the rim for a layup between three defenders and swished four freebies.

Herro, Jaquez and Robinson each converted a tray in the fourth, too.

Defensively in the fourth, Smith was held to zero baskets in four tries covered by Adebayo, Richardson and Jaquez, forcing him into deep jumpers.

The Heat won 120-113, starting its four-game homestand. The group finished with 15 fastbreak points, 11 scored via second chance, and 13 off turnovers. In the half court, it scored 121.8 points per 100 possessions, good enough for the 95 percentile of all games this season, per Cleaning the Glass.

Adebayo was in charge with 22 points on 75% shooting with 12 rebounds. Jović finished with six points, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks.

At the on-court interview, Adebayo said he was getting greedy about possibly making his third All-Star team. (He previously repped the East in 2020 and 2023.) “The biggest thing about it is improving and getting better. As you grow in this league and you got two All-Star [appearances], you want three, you want four, you want five. So you just keep that mentality.”

At the postgame presser, Spoelstra said Jović was “really good” in his minutes. “I don’t know what his stat line was, but he was able to generate a lot of easy opportunities for us in the open court…”

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Maybe it’s time to realize Tua isn’t enough

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The Miami Dolphins lost Sunday Night to the Buffalo Bills 21-14, crushing their hopes to win the AFC East for the first time since 2008.

And they learned something…

They learned that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa may not be enough to go all the way this season.

He may not be enough to go all the way in ANY season.

The team saw it, the fans saw it, I saw it.

 

 

*****

The Miami Dolphins lead the Bills at halftime, up 14-7, and what did we see in the 2nd half?

The Bills defense dominating, and Josh Allen finishing.

That’s when I came to ask myself: when does Tua Tagovailoa finish games for the Miami Dolphins? Especially, against teams headed for the playoffs. And especially versus teams with highly athletic
quarterbacks who he will likely face in the postseason when the games matter.

Did Tua win in Buffalo earlier in the season during the Miami Dolphins first meeting against the division rival Bills?

Nope.

Did Tua perform well in Germany when the team faced the Kansas City Chiefs and went down 21-0 by the end of the first half, and had the ball literally slip out of his hands on his final 2 plays of the game?

Nope.

Sunday Night Football in Philly, despite the defense tying the score 17-17 in the second half, the offense didn’t show up that entire half, and Tua melted once the 4th quarter started.

Facing a 4-8 Tennessee Titans team on MNF at home, and playing a rookie quarterback, the Titans gift wrap a win by giving the Dolphins a 14-point lead in the bottom 5 minutes of the game. How does Tua and the offense respond? Three and out; and a 6 play, 16 yard drive ending with a turnover on downs.

The Ravens game on New Years Eve? I couldn’t wait for 2023 to end after that 56-19 blowout.

And yes, Tua beat Dak Prescott and the Cowboys at Hard Rock Stadium on Christmas Eve. But you know what? That’s the Cowboys, they don’t play good on the road. And last time i checked, Tua and the Miami offense was responsible for only 1 touchdown in that game.

And last night on SNF, for the division crown, I saw a 2nd half filled with 3 and outs, 4 punts, and an interception.

Tua couldn’t find a way to put the team on his back at any point in the 2nd half, despite getting chance after chance by the defense. After Buffalo took a 21-14 lead, Tua had the opportunity on 2
different drives to make a statement. The results were a 3 and out, and a 4 play, 23-yard drive ending in an interception.

You know who I did see put the team on his back?

Josh Allen.

And it’s not to say Allen had a great game; he didn’t. Allen was responsible for turning over the ball 3 times. But he cleaned up his first half mistakes, and put the cape on in the 2nd half. Allen converted when the Bills backs where against the wall on late downs. Allen made killer throws. Allen took off with his legs. Allen broke tackles and made people miss. Allen converted on the upsy-daisy in
short yardage situations on long drives to kill the clock and keep the ball out of the Dolphins hands.

Allen did things that Tua just can’t do.

Allen is an assassin, and he has those special physical qualities which allow him to make unreal plays when the game is on the line.

So does Jalen Hurts when he’s doing the Brotherly Shove, Lamar Jackson when he’s pulling so much attention that it’s leaving receivers open, Patrick Mahomes in clutch time….

Tua’s special quality is his accuracy.

But those quarterbacks are accurate too…

They also have everything else.

My point is: if Tua can’t beat these quarterbacks during the regular season when the stakes are low, how is he expected to do that in the postseason when it’s win or go-home?

 

******

Mike Hernandez is a new contributor to Five Reasons Sports Network. You can find him at @MadmanMikeDD

Pressure Point: Heat’s on Tua, McDaniel as Dolphins face chilly prospects in playoffs

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So, what’s the mood, Miami Dolphins fans, excited about the playoffs?

Your team finished the regular season 11-6, its most wins in 15 years. It’s headed to the postseason in back-to-back seasons for the first time in more than two decades.

And yet, anger and dejection is palpable throughout South Florida after watching a bevy of annoying Buffalo fans celebrate their Bills snatching the AFC East title on the Dolphins’ home field on the final night of the season. Just the latest Dolphins debacle played out before a national audience.

Ya got us again, Dolphins.

No team is as adept at luring its fans into skydiving without a parachute as the Dolphins.

They outdid themselves this time. Redefining epic collapse, the Fins squandered a three-game lead in the division over the final five games. Instead of opening the playoffs at home, they must travel to face the defending champion Chiefs in freezing Kansas City.

Tagovailoa disappears in second half

At the most important moment of season that brought so much acclaim to Tua Tagovailoa and the offense, it was Tagovailoa and the offense that failed miserably in the second half of the 21-14 loss to the Bills.

That and an inexplicable lapse on special teams in allowing a 95-yard punt return by Deonte Harty.

Vic Fangio’s defense did its part in holding Josh Allen and the Bills to two touchdowns and forcing three turnovers (two interceptions and a brilliant strip-sack by Christian Wilkins) plus an inspiring stop at the goal line by Jerome Baker to end the first half.

The defense clearly wore down in the fourth quarter — losing two more edge players from its depleted corps of outside linebackers (Andrew Van Ginkel and Cameron Goode) was a factor. But the second-half undoing was squarely on Mike McDaniel’s highfalutin offense.

The Dolphins totaled just 47 yards of total offense in the second half while holding the ball for only seven minutes. In five possessions after the half, they punted four times (three were three-and-outs). The final indignity saw Tagovailoa overthrowing seldom-used Chase Claypool for his second interception of the game.

“We never felt like they stopped us. That’s the tough part about tonight,” veteran left tackle Terron Armstead said. “We had some missed opportunities. I, myself, had a terrible false start and I feel like I screwed the team. We lost momentum after that. It just kind of sucked the energy – not necessarily sucked the energy – but just a very bad penalty to take that five-yard loss. So man, I completely screwed the team right there, and it was hard for us to get back on track after that. I take full accountability for that.”

McDaniel’s offense struggles against top teams

There was plenty of accountability to be directed at the head coach and playmakers as well.

After rushing for 101 yards in the first half while building a 14-7 lead, Miami ran the ball only three times in the second half.

Tua, who led back-to-back 75-yard touchdown drives in the second quarter, was out of sync after the intermission. Even Tyreek Hill, who celebrated his TD catch with a gymnastics routine worthy of Simone Biles, had a couple of drops.

McDaniel said: “It seemed like take a turn each drive. We weren’t able to really get the momentum of the drive going, which is what happens when myself as a play caller decides to pass, anticipating that we have an advantageous look. I think at this point in the season you have to trust a lot of things and it didn’t work out. It goes really to the whole group because we were running the ball well. They changed their box count which wasn’t like they changed defenses. They just called more eight-man front and you have to be able to adjust with the defense and make plays in all phases, and we were unable to do that tonight.”

For all the praise directed toward McDaniel as an offensive innovator, he is starting to resemble Adam Gase 2.0.

A lot of the gaudy stats generated by the Dolphins’ league-leading offense have the luster of fool’s gold. When needed most, McDaniel’s offense hasn’t delivered.

In six games against teams going to the playoffs, the Dolphins scored 20, 17, 14, 22, 19 and 14 points. They won only one of those games, the 22-20 comeback against the Cowboys.

Tagovailoa outplayed by Jackson, Allen

Leading the 64-yard drive to the winning field goal in the final 3 ½ minutes against Dallas was Tagovailoa’s finest moment. In the two losses since then — 56-19 disaster at Baltimore and Sunday against the Bills — the Dolphins’ supposed franchise quarterback was thoroughly outplayed and overshadowed by the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson and Buffalo’s Allen.

Tua’s passer rating against the Bills was 62.7, his worst of the season. Second worst was 71.9 at Baltimore.

Granted, Allen is prone to mistakes. He threw two interceptions and lost a fumble Sunday. But in the fourth quarter he took over the game and enforced his will. Facing third and 13 on a clock-killing drive, Allen rumbled through Dolphins defenders for 15 yards.

While McDaniel is 20-15 as Dolphins coach, he’s 3-11 against teams that have made the playoffs the past two seasons.

Make no mistake, McDaniel and Tagovailoa aren’t going away next season. But the reckoning Dolphins ownership and management must contemplate is where can this franchise go with them? And what are the options for alternatives?

Long shot to break drought in playoffs

Because a season that appeared headed for a breakthrough is now back to a well worn crossroad to nowhere, facing a likely one-and-done in the playoffs. There have been four of those (including last year at Buffalo) since the wild-card win in overtime over the Colts in 2000.

According to CBS Sports HQ Research, the Bills are the fourth team in NFL history to win a division after being down three-plus games with five or fewer games to play. (1973 Bengals, 2008 Chargers, 2022 Jaguars). After floundering at 6-6 and firing their offensive coordinator, they now take the momentum of five consecutive wins into opening the playoffs at home as the second seed in the AFC.

For Miami, it’s off to playoff purgatory at Kansas City where temperatures for Saturday night are forecast to drop as low as minus-2 degrees.

“We can’t dwell on what has happened,” Armstead said. “We’re the six seed. We got to go play Kansas City, let’s go. Let’s go do it. Let’s make it happen. We go up there and get a big win against the defending champs, on to the next.”

Who knows, the NFL is full of surprises. Some may view the Chiefs as less formidable right now than the Bills, who would have returned to Miami Gardens if the Dolphins had prevailed.

But seriously, the prospects of Tua leading an upset in frigid and foreboding Arrowhead Stadium? I’m not putting cash on it at the Hard Rock Sportsbook.

Craig Davis has covered South Florida sports and teams, including the Dolphins, for four decades. Follow him on the site formerly known as Twitter @CraigDavisRuns.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Suns outshine the touring Heat

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Kevin Love carried the Heat early, supplying 15 points, firing behind the arc, facing up in the post and cutting to the basket on a perfect five attempts. Kyle Lowry splashed a pair of triples. Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored off three back door cuts. But the Suns, without Kevin Durant, devoured the Heat’s Jimmy Butler-less defenses and held the visitors to its season low of 97 points. (Butler was absent with right toe irritation, and Caleb Martin was too with a right ankle sprain.)

Phoenix’s Grayson Allen burned the Heat for unnecessarily abandoning the corner twice, plus canned a transition trifecta and his last was against drop coverage. Devin Booker added 10 points on four of six shots from all three areas of the halfcourt.

In the second quarter, JJJ, Nikola Jovic, Duncan Robinson, Lowry, and Tyler Herro logged a donut. However, Bam Adebayo was the source of the offense, powering past multiple defenders on the baseline and in the lane, hitting a reverse layup over Drew Eubanks, swishing a couple of jumpers at the nail and slamming a lob on the roll, fed by Herro. Counting his five freebies, he totaled 17 of the Heat’s 26 points in the frame, and only Josh Richardson recorded a field goal, aside from Adebayo’s six.

Defensively, no formulas stopped Allen from connecting on three more trays and blowing past Love for a finger roll layup. In this period, the Heat flashed the zone and man coverage, yielding four of five baskets in the restricted area. Additionally, Bradley Beal and Booker combined for 14 points on 54% shooting, getting to the paint whenever they wanted.

At halftime, the Heat were down 55-62, with 18 paint points plus four off turnovers and zero scored on the break. The guests were behind on the glass by two but took 12 extra free throws and converted 46.2% of its field goals.

In the third quarter, the offense made three buckets in a row, then subsided, failing on nine straight, courtesy of the Suns’ defense. Herro and Lowry were useless, registering no points. All eight attempts from the left side missed as the Heat produced on just 29.2% of its looks.

Within four minutes, the crew was down 17 to the Suns. Booker was contained, but Chimezie Metu, Bol Bol, Eubanks and Beal didn’t miss on nine tries.

The final quarter was a disaster shooting from the perimeter, making only two of 10 triples. Yet, Adebayo plowed into the paint for a dunk, lob off the roll and floater in transition. Getting within 13 points with six minutes left was as close as the Heatles got in the period to threatening the lead.

The Heat lost 97-113 in a match that featured 14 first-half lead changes. The offense produced 94.4 points per 100 possessions, good enough for the 40th percentile of all games this season, per Cleaning the Glass.

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra said the hosts were getting lots of easy baskets in the first half which established their momentum in the second. “At the start of the third, when we weren’t knocking down shots, now you’re dealing with a team that had great flow, great confidence, and they were just able to play with ease pretty much offensively in that second half.”

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