Powell, Jaquez & Ware shine as Heat escape Brooklyn

The Miami Heat went into Brooklyn on Thursday night and ended their five-game losing streak after thwarting the Nets.

Here's how they were able to come out on top:

Out the mud: This was not an aesthetically pleasing game to watch, but it was nice to see the Heat end up with a win in one of these types of games. To help illustrate that point, the Heat shot 35 percent on their jump shots while the Nets made 25 percent of theirs.

Although it wasn't necessarily the most encouraging game against a team of the Nets' caliber, they were able to get back to basics with their defensive play after there was some shakiness on that end throughout the streak. The Heat held the Nets to a 0th percentile 67 offensive rating in the halfcourt and a 4th percentile overall offensive rating of 96.9.

Nic Claxton gave the Heat issues on both ends, but outside of him, the rest of the Nets combined to shoot 33.7 percent from the field. The Heat also did a great job of not fouling, as the Nets ended up with a 2nd percentile free throw rate.

The Heat did a good job of executing their defensive gameplan in this one, holding the Nets to below average frequency of shots at the rim and in the short mid-range and, as they typically do, were okay with allowing threes. Davion Mitchell, Bam Adebayo, Dru Smith and Andrew Wiggins did their jobs as the team's best defenders.

The Nets have the second-highest percentage of overall field goals coming from beyond the arc, but convert them at the sixth-worst mark, which fit very nicely into the Heat's strategy. In this game, they took 48 percent of their shots from three, but only converted 23 percent.

Just enough to get through: On the other side of the floor, the Heat didn't have the most effective night, finishing with a 23rd percentile halfcourt offensive rating. However, they did have two potent offensive quarters to start and finish the game, (125 offensive rating in the first, 126 in the fourth).

The Heat were able to achieve this by doing the opposite of what the Nets did on offense, with 64 percent of their shots coming at the rim or in the short mid-range and not taking many beyond the arc (ninth percentile frequency from three).

Norman Powell, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kel'el Ware were the only effective scorers in this game, and every bit of their buckets were needed in a close, ugly game against a subpar team. They combined to make 25 of their 35 shot attempts.

Davion Mitchell, as usual, played great defense, finished with seven assists and an efficient 10 points. Dru Smith didn't shoot it well but also defended well and finished with six assists.

They still have work to do as far as keeping their off-ball movement dynamic throughout rough offensive stretches and finding a way to create better looks from three, but getting back to their identity on both ends definitely helped.