Thanks to a 25-6 run to close out the game, the HEAT defeated the Wizards 100-89 Sunday night at Capital One Arena.
And while a few guys made some big plays down the stretch, it all started with Bam Adebayo.
Let’s get to it.
1. Bam Dominates
Soo…the Wizards had absolutely no answer for Adebayo.
From the start, the 22-year-old took it to Thomas Bryant and Rui Hachimura and either finished catch-and-go drives or pick-and-roll jams.
And with Miami in danger of losing once again on the road, Adebayo responded and led all players with 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the fourth.
Above all else, this bucket against Bryant during the flurry was rather crafty:
Of course, the big fella also fared very well on defensive switches and made things quite tough on Bradley Beal when matched up with him.
In all, Adebayo had a game-high 27 points (tied with Shabazz Napier) on 9-of-13 shooting from the field and 9-of-12 shooting from the line, a game-high 14 rebounds, a team-high six assists, one block and a plus-22 rating.
2. Robinson Keeps It Up
Although Duncan Robinson scored eight points and dished out this awesome pass to Adebayo in the first quarter…
…he helped put the Wizards away with nine points on 3-of-3 shooting in the fourth, including this trey that essentially sealed the deal:
(Naturally, it was off a handoff from Adebayo.)
Robinson finished with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 7-of-11 from deep, seven boards, two assists, a game-high two blocks (tied with Andre Iguodala, Solomon Hill and Beal), one steal and a game-high plus-26 rating.
3. Nunn Finds The Range
Kendrick Nunn struggled a bit with his shot, but he stuck with it as usual and didn’t let anything deter him.
In fact, he drilled four threes, with none as important as this one that gave the HEAT a 92-86 lead with 2:09 left:
(Hey look, another assist by Adebayo.)
When it was all said and done, Nunn amassed 18 points on 7-of-17 shooting, including 4-of-9 from downtown, five rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Other Takeaways:
-Derrick Jones Jr. emptied the tank defensively against Beal and came away with this huge block on him late in the fourth:
Jones Jr. ended up with four points, eight rebounds, three assists, a team-high three steals and that block above.
Game Notes:
-Jimmy Butler suffered a left toe injury in the third quarter and did not return.
-Jae Crowder (Concussion Protocol) was an active scratch.
-Kyle Alexander (G League - Two Way), Tyler Herro (Right Ankle Soreness), Meyers Leonard (Left Ankle Sprain) and KZ Okpala (G League - On Assignment) were inactive.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will head back to the 305 for a three-game homestand, starting on Wednesday at 7:30PM against the Hornets. Tickets for that game at AmericanAirlines Arena can be found here.