The Miami Heat defeated the New York Knicks, 127-120, at Miami-Dade Arena on Wednesday night.

The Heat (40-34) came into the contest aiming to protect its playoff positioning and also atone for a two-point loss to the Knicks (42-32) earlier in the month, but it was New York that emerged from the first quarter with a 32-31 lead. However, Miami would go on to prevail in each of the three remaining quarters, and Erik Spoelstra's squad was one point better than the visitors over the final 12 minutes to secure the hard-fought win.

R.J. Barrett led the Knicks with 26 points, adding six rebounds and five assists. Jalen Brunson turned in 25 points, six boards, six assists and one steal. Quentin Grimes furnished 22 points, two rebounds and one assist. Julius Randle managed 15 points, nine assists, six rebounds and one steal. Josh Hart supplied 12 points, four boards, three assists, two steals and one block. Mitchell Robinson registered 10 points, eight rebounds, one assist and three blocks.

Jimmy Butler paced the Heat with 35 points, supplementing them with nine assists, four rebounds and four steals. Tyler Herro delivered 22 points, four assists and three rebounds. Gabe Vincent posted 19 points and three assists. Bam Adebayo compiled 15 points, seven rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block. Kyle Lowry collected 14 points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal.

The Knicks remain on the road and visit the Orlando Magic on Thursday night, while the Heat remain home and tangle with the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night.