Five Heatles scoring in double-figures wasn’t enough to secure the win because the defense lost its edge and gave up 19 trifectas. To make matters worse, the Bulls scored  16.1 percentage points above the league average in the paint non restricted area.

But things were going well early. Duncan Robinson and Kel’el Ware scored the team‘s first four baskets at long plus close range and put them up 10-2 at the first Bulls stoppage. It didn’t help the hosts much on defense because Miami slammed three more lobs and made two extra 3-pointers to take a 37-32 lead at the end of the first quarter.

On the other side, the heat mixed in a zone with man-to-man coverage, but rookie Matas Buzelis erupted for nine points on rim attacks, a putback, and a 3-pointer. Ayo Dosunmu was the only other Bull to make multiple field goals in the period, too. But the Heat countered with Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jović and Alec Burks combining for eight shots in 11 tries.

At halftime, the Heat was up 70-60. They were tied in paint points at 32 and tied in fastbreak points at four. But the Bulls were up in second-chance points 13-7.

Subsequently, the third quarter was a shootout. Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro carried the Heat offensively. But the bulls eviscerated the zone plus man-to-man coverage. Dosunmu even dunked viciously on Robison on a drive from the wing to the cup. And Coby White burned the Heat with three 3-pointers.

The fourth quarter started with the heat ahead 103-94. Their offense went cold to the tune of two makes in their first dozen tries, which allowed the Bulls to tie with six minutes left. Next, Adebayo tried to stop the bleeding with a baseline lob, a layup through contact and two mid-range jumpers, but it wasn’t enough. The Bulls made their next five baskets in nine attempts to take control.

The Heat lost 133-124. The team was outscored in paint points 58-46 and fastbreak points 13-6. Both squads were tied in second-chance points with 15.

Takeaways:

• Ware had 13 points in the first quarter but got weaker as the game went on, scoring only four more digits. He’s too physically gifted and should never take his foot off the accelerator. 

• Adebayo was sensational in a lost effort. He had 23 points on 58.8% shooting, with eight rebounds, four assists and three turnovers. He scored four of the Heat’s seven field goals in the fourth quarter.

• Buzelis scored 24 points on an immaculate 10 shots from outside and in.

• Robinson only played 11 minutes. He was on the injury report with a hip contusion before the game and did not defend well. 

• Rozier was a dud in 29 minutes, making two shots and 12 tries and got beat on defense. 

• Herro was unlike an All-Star, making only a third of his shots and was forced into some bad ones.

• The Heat’s zone was cracked on dribble penetration, and the team stayed too long in it. 

• Nikola Jović had 20 points off the bench, including five 3-pointers. He continues to be a bright spot for the team.

The Miami Heat narrowly escaped with a 105-103 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night, overcoming a tough shooting night and an uncharacteristically sloppy performance. Playing against a Spurs team missing star Victor Wembanyama, the Heat struggled to find consistency but were ultimately saved by Bam Adebayo, who dominated throughout the game and nailed the game-winning shot in the final seconds.

A Sluggish Performance

From the opening tip, Miami found itself in a battle against an undermanned but determined Spurs squad. Despite San Antonio missing Wembanyama, the Heat failed to take control, allowing the Spurs to keep pace throughout. Both teams were tied at 33 after the first quarter, with Miami’s offense looking stagnant. Tyler Herro had a particularly rough night, shooting just 4-of-16 from the field and missing all eight of his three-point attempts.

As the game wore on, the Heat’s struggles continued. While Bam Adebayo was the lone bright spot, finishing with a game-high 30 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists, Miami couldn’t pull away. The Spurs’ balanced attack, led by Devin Vassell’s 18 points and Keldon Johnson’s 19 off the bench, kept them within striking distance.

Bam Takes Over

With Miami clinging to a slim lead in the fourth quarter, Adebayo elevated his game. His presence on both ends of the court was crucial, particularly his defense and playmaking. With the score tied at 103 and the clock winding down, the Heat put the ball in Bam’s hands. The All-Star big man calmly knocked down a mid-range jumper over his defender as the game clock expired giving Miami the win.

Adebayo finished with a dominant 30 points, 13 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 blocks, and 2 steals, shooting an efficient 13-of-21 from the field and 2-of-5 from three-point range. His all-around performance was the difference-maker in an otherwise frustrating night for Miami.

Key Takeaways

• Bam Is Back?
• Tyler Herro struggled mightily, shooting just 4-of-16 and 0-of-8 from three.
• The Heat’s bench provided a spark, with Nikola Jović and Terry Rozier combining for 33 points.
• The Spurs, despite missing Wembanyama, nearly stole the game, thanks to solid efforts from Vassell, Johnson, and Chris Paul.
• Jaime Jaquez’s Jr, Jaquez’s regression is still concerning for Miami especially as the deadline looms. His defensive lapses shined bright tonight.
• Another Victory in the Rebound Column, The Heat win the battle of the boards, they come away with victories, exactly the case tonight. Outrebounding San Antonio 52-48.

While the Heat improved to 24-23 on the season, this game served as a reminder that they have work to do if they want to make a deep playoff run. Miami will look to build on this win as they continue their road trip this Tuesday in Chicago.

The Nuggets were slain by the Bulls on tour because of their inability to defend the three-point line and could barely hit any treys of their own.

After the game, coach Michael Malone blasted his team, saying. “Once again, it was us just messing with the game, thinking we can just show up and score at will… our inability or unwillingness to guard one-on-one and our inability or unwilling to rebound the basketball when they did miss, the few times they missed, was on full display.”

The offense was beaming early as five Nuggets made multiple field goals, including Nikola Jokić and Christian Braun combining for 10 of 10 in the first quarter. On top of that, the crew punched in 28 points in the lane, courtesy of fastbreaks off turnovers plus screen rolls.

Their biggest issue was failing to stop Nikola Vucevic from adding 11 points from close, mid and long range. Additionally, Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis made four of five shots.

The second quarter started with the visitors up 35-32. Next, Murray scored three times inside and made a triple, and Jokić produced on the break twice, nailed a floater on a pick-and-roll set and logged a putback. The rest of the team registered 37.5% of attempts, and the defense started to fold, allowing seven of 14 3-pointers.

At halftime, the Nuggets were up 68-61. They led in three key areas: paint points 50-14, fastbreak points 20-0 and points off turnovers 18-3. The Bulls slightly led in second-chance points 8-6.

Then Jokić punched in his fifth dunk of the game on a feed from Murray, Westbrook scored on the catch and dribble and Michael Porter Jr. supplied eight points. But the Bulls went on a stampede after the Nuggets were ahead by 10, closing the third quarter on an 18-7 run. Most of the damage was done by Ayo Dosunmu hitting two quick 3-pointers, and the Nuggets went down a point heading into the next frame

The Nuggets followed up by missing their first seven attempts, and Jokić had to end his break early and check in with over nine minutes left. Multiple shots by Murray and three straight up close from Braun gave the team a spark, but the Bulls traded three 3-pointers late to put down the Nuggets.

The Nuggets lost 129-121. They outscored the Bulls in the paint by 46, on the break by 15 and off turnovers by five, but it wasn’t enough. The hosts connected on 18 extra 3-pointers.

Malone said, “We have to be better as we move forward.”

Takeaways: 

• Jokić made his first 10 shots and finished with 33 points on 15 of 21 attempts, with 12 rebounds and 14 assists . He recorded his 21st triple-double of the season.

• The Nuggets’ attack spent 74.6% of its time in the half-court. They logged 94.3 points per 100 plays, good enough for the 42 percentile of all games played this season, per Cleaning the Glass.

• Murray had a strong first half and despite hitting two late shots, got weaker as the game went on.

• Braun was the team’s second-best player, logging a career-high 28 points. His previous best was 25 points, set on Nov. 17, 2023, in a loss in New Orleans. He was a threat on the break and did well putting the ball on the floor in the half-court.

• A season-high of 84 points in the lane went to waste.

• Malone said he went to the shorter eight-man rotation to try Aaron Gordon at backup center. He was also displeased with the bench, saying they “didn’t have much productivity… that group’s gotta give us a spark, some energy, some juice.”

• Gordon only played 22 minutes, showing some flashes of bully ball, but he was inefficient, making three of nine shots, and his defense was sub-standard. In particular, he let Patrick Williams blow by him for a floater and got dropped by Buzelis before he dunked.

The Nuggets got schooled by their division foes in Minnesota and were always behind. They let the Timberwolves invade their paint for 72 points, the second-most digits given up to an opponent in that spot all year.

They showed little resistance on defense and were on their back foot early. It took Nikola Jokić scoring five times at close range plus nailing a pick-and-pop shot, and Jamal Murray making two jumpers and laying in a lob to prevent the team from getting shamed. 

The defense was still helpless in the second quarter because of poor closeouts and turnovers not letting them get into position. Yet, Russell Westbrook and Murray combined for six of nine baskets on the dribble and catch to keep the team within striking distance.

At halftime, the Nuggets were down 71-60. They had 36 paint points, four on the break, 14 via second chances and 12 off turnovers. 

The Timberwolves had 46 paint points, 20 on the break, 12 via second chances and 19 off turnovers.

Then the Nuggets came out of the break, making three of five baskets, but were down 15 points over two minutes in. Their offense shot 59.1% for the period, but the Wolves kept feasting when they wanted to, and four of them made multiple field goals.  Anthony Edwards defaced the defense the most, dribbling into its heart for three baskets and nailing two triples.

The fourth quarter started with the Nuggets down 109-91. The Timberwolves’ attack finally slowed, but making nine of 24 shots was more than enough as they were so far ahead, and the Nuggets offense was in the dirt. Jokić and Murray only played two more minutes before checking out in the last five with the team down 25. 

The Nuggets lost 133-104. They were outscored in three key areas: paint points 72-58, fastbreak points 16-8 and second-chance points 20-18. On top of that, Minnesota was superior from deep, making 46.7% of attempts to Denver’s 34.4%.

Takeaways:

• The defense was slow to react to cutters plus shooters, and failed to play help effectively, Jokić especially. The Timberwolves logged a 63.2 effective field goal percentage, the third-highest opponent accuracy all season. 

• Michael Porter Jr. also had one of his worst nights of the year. He’s 6’10 but played like he’s 6’1 on the glass because he got no rebounds. And he was a liability on defense.

• This was the seventh game of the year the Nuggets had at least 20 turnovers. Their record in those games is 5-2.

• The Nuggets got beat up on the glass by nine boards and gave up 18 offensive rebounds.

• Murray had burst on the dribble and his jumper was on target. He finished with 25 points on 62.5% shooting, plus two rebounds, five assists and two turnovers. This is a different player from the slower and heavier-looking Murray, who was struggling earlier in the season. He was the Nuggets’ biggest bright spot in a blowout loss. 

• Jokić’s five-game triple-double streak concluded as he was seven rebounds away from another. He also tied his season worst of seven turnovers.