Wade scored 20 of his game-high 41 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to bail out the Heat on a night when it squandered a five-point lead in the final minute of regulation.

"That No. 3 is pretty amazing," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, referring to Wade's jersey number. "He just never ceases to amaze me. Never."

Wade redeemed himself of the missed jumper in regulation with 10 points in overtime, including a three-pointer that tied it with 46.3 seconds. He then made two free throws to put the Heat ahead 117-115 with 5.3 seconds left. The Heat finished it off with two defensive stops and a pair of Daequan Cook free throws.

"We looked at this as a must-win game, because you don't want to start a trip 0-2," Wade said. "I was going to do everything that I could to help this team win after I missed that shot to win the game in regulation."

Wade, the league's leading scorer, did just about everything Friday on the way to his fifth 40-point game of the season. He had seven assists, five rebounds, three steals and a block in 47 minutes. He also had a lot of help.

Rookie forward Michael Beasley celebrated his 20th birthday with his second career double-double. He had 23 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. Marion Chalmers had 13 points, including a clutch three-pointer that put Miami up 102-97 with 46.9 seconds left in regulation.

Udonis Haslem, who had 11 points and eight rebounds, contributed a clutch three-point play that gave the Heat a 111-108 lead in overtime. Cook scored 10 points off the bench.

John Salmons, a former University of Miami standout, scored 29 to lead the Kings (8-29), who have lost nine of their past 10 games against Miami.

"It felt good to go out there and get a win on your birthday," Beasley said. "We kind of made it tough on ourselves. But we did what we had to do at the end to get the win. It's big."

It was also a therapeutic victory for the Heat, which entered Friday having lost four of its previous six games. Miami hopes to carry its momentum into Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

"We needed this one, big-time, because it doesn't get any easier going to L.A.," Haslem said. "It would have been a shame to lose."

To see more of The Miami Herald or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.herald.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Miami Herald Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.