CHARLOTTE, N.C. – It wasn’t pretty, but the Miami Heat avoided a big letdown and got the win they needed.

LeBron James had 27 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists as the Heat handed the Charlotte Bobcats their 16th straight loss, 105-92 on Wednesday night.

Dwyane Wade scored 29 points and had nine rebounds as Miami extended its winning streak to six.

One night after an emotional win over Oklahoma City, James and Wade made sure there would be no lull against the Bobcats.

While the Heat led 55-38 at halftime, they didn’t put the Bobcats away until late.

Charlotte cut the Miami lead to 84-82 when Gerald Henderson completed a three-point play with 7:16 left. But James knocked down a 3-pointer, Wade hit a pair of jumpers, and Shane Battier added a 3-pointer from the right corner to complete an 11-3 run that pushed the lead to 10.

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Miami wasn’t challenged again.

Kemba Walker had 27 points, and Ramon Sessions added 19 points for the Bobcats (7-21), who haven’t won since Nov. 24.

Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra said before the game his team respected the Bobcats. He hinted he was a little worried about the energy Miami expended against the Thunder and whether the Heat would get up for a team that had lost 15 straight.

James made sure the Heat brought the intensity with four dunks in the first seven minutes.

HORNETS 97, MAGIC 94: Robin Lopez had a season-high 29 points and Greivis Vasquez scored a season-best 27 as New Orleans snapped an 11-game losing streak .

Host Orlando had a chance to tie the game in the closing seconds but came up empty on a 3-point attempt by Nikola Vucevic. The victory was the Hornets’ first since Dec. 3 and their fourth straight regular-season win over the Magic.

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BULLS AT PACERS: Citing severe weather conditions and safety concerns for fans and stadium employees traveling to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, the NBA postponed Wednesday night’s Bulls-Pacers game roughly three hours before tipoff in Indianapolis.

The NBA will announce a rescheduled date and tickets for Wednesday’s game will be honored.

CAVALIERS 87, WIZARDS 84: Tristan Thompson’s three-point play with 24.4 seconds remaining gave visiting Cleveland its first two-game winning streak of the season.

76ERS 99, GRIZZLIES 89: Dorell Wright scored 28 points and Philadelphia went on to end its six-game road losing streak.

BUCKS 108, NETS 93: Brandon Jennings scored 25 points, Monta Ellis added 20 points and a season-high six steals, and Milwaukee beat Brooklyn for the 13th straight time.

ROCKETS 87, TIMBERWOLVES 84: James Harden scored 17 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter for Houston.


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