Dwyane Wade does his 4th-quarter thing to push Miami Heat past Charlotte Hornets

The stakes in this game were playoff-like, and you know what happens when the Charlotte Hornets find Dwyane Wade waiting for them in a playoff:

Fourth-quarter disaster.

Wade, in what is probably his last game against the Hornets before retirement, nailed two fourth-quarter 3-pointers in pushing the Miami Heat to a 93-75 home victory over the Hornets in a game of postseason consequence. The Hornets and Orlando Magic are chasing the Heat for what looks like the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

This victory gave the Heat a two-game margin over the Hornets in the conference standings.

The Heat’s defense was brilliant against Hornets All-Star guard Kemba Walker, who shot 4-of-16 to finish with 10 points. Jeremy Lamb scored 21 for the Hornets off the bench.

Wade almost single-handedly beat the Hornets in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of a playoff series in 2016, getting that first-round series back to Miami, where the Heat buried the Hornets in Game 7. Wade finished with 17 on Sunday, and another Heat veteran reserve, Goran Dragic, added 19.

Lamb: In a game where points were no given, he was efficient all over the offensive end of the court.

Wade: Such a safety net for a young team.

Bam Adebayo: He was just about the Heat’s only offense in the first quarter and finished with 16 points and nine rebounds.

▪ The big news pregame was the Heat announcing starter Justise Winslow would be out due to a right thigh bruise. That pushed Derrick Jones Jr., into Miami’s starting lineup.

▪ Wade was doubtful with a right hip bruise, but was activated. This, in all likelihood, was Wade’s last game against the Hornets. His fourth quarter in Game 6 of the 2016 playoff series was one of the most consequential opponent performances in Hornets history. The Heat came back from a 2-3 deficit to close out the series in seven games.

▪ As expected, Hornets center Cody Zeller missed his third consecutive game with a left knee injury. Borrego said the swelling was still enough to take a cautious approach to using Zeller.

▪ The game was tied at halftime 39-39, just the fifth NBA game this season when neither team reached 40 points by halftime.

▪ Borrego again chose to activate rookie Devonte Graham as his third option at point guard over veteran Shelvin Mack. Borrego’s rotation often changes quickly, but claiming Mack off waivers doesn’t seem like it will have much impact as the filled 15th roster spot.

▪ Lamb scored 11 of the Hornets’ 20 first-quarter points, including a 30-footer off the backboard to avoid a shot-clock violation.

“If you don’t know the standings at this point, then I feel sorry for you. If you don’t understand the magnitude of this game, then I worry about you as a competitor.” – Hornets coach James Borrego on the stakes involved in Sunday’s Heat-Hornets game.

“There’s still swelling there that we have to be cautious about.” – Borrego on holding out Zeller for a third consecutive game due to his left knee injury.

F OFFENSE: The Heat’s traps on Walker were very effective and his teammates for the most part didn’t recognize and respond.

B DEFENSE: A solid job of keeping the Heat out of the paint.

C COACHING: Borrego went deep into his bench looking for answers, didn’t find what he needed.