Thanks to an inspired 27-8 run early in the fourth quarter, the HEAT snapped their losing streak and defeated the Mavs 126-118 Friday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Let’s find out how they did it.
1. Robinson Responds
After Dallas went off for 38 points in the third to take a five-point lead entering the fourth, Duncan Robinson responded in a big way.
In fact, he scored a team-high nine points on 3-of-4 shooting in the final period, including this fantastic cut and finish:
That’s how you get it done.
In all, Robinson tallied 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including 6-of-9 from deep, five boards, one assist, one steal and a game-high plus-26 rating.
2. Jimmy Aggressive From The Start
Simply put, Butler kicked off the game with a mid-range jumper and never looked back.
From there, the 30-year-old remained aggressive and attacked the basket for hard-nosed finishes inside.
The result?
A team-high 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 10-of-12 shooting from the line, five boards and three assists.
Oh yeah, he also had this block on Luka Dončić that led to a three for Robinson in the second quarter:
Long story short, Jimmy was Jimmy.
3. KO With The Vision
Like Robinson, Kelly Olynyk was vital in Miami’s fourth quarter flurry.
How so?
Well, he dished out a game-high six assists in the period. Yes, six.
And when he wasn’t setting up his guys, he was spacing the floor as usual.
When it was all said and done, Olynyk amassed 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from distance, a team-high nine assists, seven boards and a plus-20 rating.
Other Takeaways:
-Although Bam Adebayo came through with this CRAZY windmill jam in the third quarter (also note Derrick Jones Jr.’s defense to get it all started)…
…the big fella also emptied the tank against Dončić when switched onto him early on and Kristaps Porziņģis on this sequence down the stretch:
Wow.
Adebayo finished with 14 points, a team-high 11 rebounds, three assists and that block above.
-Andre Iguodala had this impressive two-way sequence during the HEAT’s run in the fourth quarter:
Iguodala ended up with four points on 2-of-4 shooting, three rebounds, one assist and a plus-13 rating.
Game Notes:
-Tyler Herro (Right Ankle Soreness) was an active scratch.
-Kyle Alexander (G League - Two Way), Meyers Leonard (Left Ankle Sprain), KZ Okpala (G League - On Assignment) and Gabe Vincent (G League - Two Way) were inactive.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will get right back to it on Saturday at 7:30PM versus the Nets. Tickets for that game at AmericanAirlines Arena can be found here.