New York Knicks blown out by Heat in matchup between David Fizdale and Erik Spoelstra

MIAMI — As the Knicks and Heat lined up facing each other on opposite ends of the court before the national anthem, David Fizdale tapped his chest and nodded his head in the direction of Erik Spoelstra. 

Spoelstra smiled and returned the gesture. 

The two have been friends for 20 years, but Wednesday night they were opponents. 

"He and I are as competitive with each other as there will ever be," Fizdale said before the game. "We fight tooth and nail. We probably fight and compete harder against each other than we do against other people, but that’s out of respect and love."

Spoelstra easily won their latest battle. 

Spoelstra's Heat blew the game open in the third quarter on the way to a 110-87 drubbing of the Knicks at American Airlines Arena on Wednesday. 

"We just, we let go of the rope tonight," Fizdale said. "This is the first time I felt like we let go and it got to us mentally and broke us in the third."

It was the Knicks' fourth straight loss, but the previous three were close. 

The Knicks will now return home, but things aren't going to get any easier. They face the Golden State Warriors Friday night at the Garden. 

"I think for us the most important thing is how we're going to respond," Enes Kanter said. "I think that was the first time we just got killed. ...We just need to go out the next game and try to fix it."

Damyean Dotson led the Knicks Wednesday with 20 points off the bench, while Tim Hardaway Jr. had 14. 

Hassan Whiteside had 22 points and 14 rebounds for Miami. Josh Richardson had 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including 5-of-6 from the perimeter. 

Tale of two halves

Miami started the second half with a two-point lead but outscored the Knicks, 45-20, in the third quarter while draining eight of their 10 three-point attempts.

"It was just so many holes in that dam," Fizdale said.

Richardson had 11 points and three triples in the quarter. 

The Knicks, meanwhile, missed all eight of their shots from the perimeter in the period. 

It was a stark contrast from the first half. 

The Knicks at one point opened up an 11-point lead while draining nine of their 15 three-point attempts. 

But they couldn't slow down Miami completely. 

The Heat went on a 12-2 run in the second quarter to retake the lead going into the break. 

Miami never relinquished it. 

Fizdale has said the Knicks have to endure struggles before they can improve. They endured a whole new struggle on Wednesday. 

"I’ve been part of very good basketball teams that this has happened to," Fizdale said. "For us it’s all about learning, figuring out the NBA and this is their first lap, a lot of these guys. Welcome to the league. It’s unforgiving. The best part about it is you’ve got another game coming real soon."

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David Fizdale's start

Miami's a meaningful place for Fizdale. 

He began his career in 1997 working for the Heat as a video intern while Spoelstra was the video coordinator. Together they toiled away in a rat-infested room, immersed in the game as they pored over game film. 

"Early on with Fiz, I felt like he was going to be a star," Spoelstra said before the game. "Just because of his personality, his communication skills and knowledge. You felt like that was a talent."

Their friendship lasted.

After Fizdale left Miami for coaching stops at the collegiate level and in the NBA, Spoelstra became an assistant coach with the Heat.

When he was elevated to head coach in 2008, Spoelstra brought Fizdale back as an assistant. Their stint together in Miami included two championship teams powered by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

Now they're on opposite sidelines. 

Wednesday was the third time they had coached against each other. The previous two came when Fizdale was coaching the Grizzlies.

Fizdale doesn't believe it will ever feel routine coaching against Spoelstra. 

"But it’ll never, ever impact our brotherhood," Fizdale said. "We made a pact many, many years ago when we first started working together that we’d never let anything in this business come between us and we’ve stuck to that.

Email: iseman@northjersey.com