Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Bam Adebayo leads Heat to win in fourth quarter

Coming out of the All-Star break in New Orleans, the Miami Heat got away with a dub at Smoothie King Center after tensions flared in the fourth, and the refs threw two players from each side. (Nikola Jovic started for Terry Rozier (right knee sprain). Josh Richardson was also out (dislocated shoulder).

As the Heat’s lead climbed to 19 points in the first half, the shooting display was like watching Sonny Corleone ride up to the toll booth. Herro made four consecutive shots. Jimmy Butler attacked from all sides, supplying 17 points. And Duncan Robinson connected on four of nine triples.

Defensively, the Heat deployed man coverage plus used the 2-2-1 press to slow down the Pelicans dribbling upcourt and the 2-3 zone in the halfcourt. NOLA’s Zion Williamson blasted through switches, scoring a reverse layup on the baseline, and logged four more close-range finishes. Additionally, CJ McCollum was held to one of seven makes, but he played through pain after twisting his left ankle.

Nearly five minutes into the second quarter, the Heat’s advantage bloated to 49-30. Then Herb Jones splashed a corner triple when Williamson was doubled and spun past Butler in transition for a six-foot floater. Williamson rolled to the rim for a layup and the Pelicans recorded eight of its last 14 attempts to close out the half on a 28-9 run.

At halftime, the game was tied at 58, but the hosts were ahead on the glass by eight. The Heat had 20 paint points, 11 on the break, two via second chances and five after turnovers. Butler tallied 17 on his scorecard with six rebounds and four assists. And Robinson and Herro each had a dozen points.

The Pelicans racked up 34 points in the square, nine in the open court, 13 on extra tries and 11 after turnovers. Williamson and Jones had 14 points apiece, but the latter was perfect on six attempts.

Next, the home team started the third quarter with Jose Alvarado in McCollum’s place. The Puerto Rican point guard contributed a donut, missing three tries. On top of that, Williamson missed in the paint guarded by Jovic, blanked over the backline and failed on a putback. The Heat capped the Pelicans to 40% shooting in the third quarter.

On offense, Adebayo cut on the baseline for a dunk, intercepted Williamson’s pass, got loose on the break and canned a midrange jumper over Jonas Valančiūnas. Butler registered a putback and an alley-oop dunk that a Tyler Herro back screen freed Herb Jones off of. And Caleb Martin had three assists, setting up Adebayo and Herro.

The Heatles entered the fourth quarter ahead 84-80, but tensions blazed 41 seconds into the period. The cause: Williamson stole the ball from Butler in Heat territory and quickly burst into the air for a layup, but was grabbed by Kevin Love to avoid the easy bucket. Yet, Williamson flopped after the contact, throwing himself to the ground. Subsequently, NOLA’s Naji Marshall shoved Love. Butler took exception, confronting Marshall and getting his throat grabbed, which set him off. He tried to get at the Pelicans forwards, but was stopped.

Close by, at the scorer’s table, as heads were cooling, Miami’s Thomas Bryant and Alvarado were exchanging words, then hands. When that scuffle broke, Butler, Bryant, Alvarado and Marshall were ejected. Game on.

Minus the Heat’s best player and fourth-string center, Adebayo carried the unit. He swished a nine-foot jumper, nailed a turnaround hook with Valančiūnas on his back, euro-stepped to the cup on the left side for a layup, and made two fadeaways and a hook over Larry Nance Jr.. The other Heatles poured in just three of 12 buckets.

(With under two minutes left, Herro hurt his left knee, stopping on a dime next to the sideline and left the game.)

On defense, Adebayo locked Williamson up at close range and the backline swarmed his drive. Rookie Jordan Hawkins was held to one of seven makes. And the remaining Pelicans scored on 33% of tries.

The Heat won 106-95 but were outrebounded by eight. Furthermore, the Heat produced 46 paint points, 18 on the break, 11 on second chances and 18 after turnovers. Adebayo supplied 24 points on 11 of 18 shots, with seven rebounds and three blocks. Butler had 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists. And Robinson had 17 points.

The Pelicans had 60 interior points, 15 in the open court, 25 on added opportunities and 15 after turnovers. Williamson scored 23 points on nine of 22 attempts. And Herbert Jones had 19 on 80% shooting.

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra said he thought Williamson “slipped” after Love fouled him. “It looked a lot worse than what it was… I don’t think on K. Love’s best day, he could throw [Williamson] down.”

In the locker room, Herro said his knee was sore and would see how it felt in the morning.

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