The Miami HEAT defeated the Orlando Magic 96-92 Tuesday afternoon at COX Pavilion in the MGM Resorts Las Vegas Summer League. Tyler Herro led the way for the HEAT with 25 points.
1. Herro Catches Fire In The 2Q
Although Herro came through with this nice finish in transition early on…
…he put Orlando on notice in the second quarter.
Like really put them on notice.
All told, Herro scored 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the period thanks to a balanced mix of attacks to the bucket and jumpers from outside.
I mean, just look at how quickly he releases this three:
Oh yeah, let’s also not forget this fantastic lead pass to Kendrick Nunn a little earlier in the quarter:
As the game progressed, Herro continued to keep the defense guessing and set up his teammates with relative ease. Then again, he also iced the game with four clutch free throws down the stretch.
That’s big time.
In addition to his game-high 25 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the field and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe, the former Kentucky Wildcat also tallied seven rebounds, five assists and a steal.
2. Nunn Does It Again
If you haven’t heard by now, Nunn is a bonafide playmaker.
In fact, Nunn rattled off nine straight points for Miami at one point in the fourth, including this jumper with contact:
That said, this bucket at the rim a little later was perhaps his most impressive offensive play of the afternoon:
Simply put, the 23-year-old continued to make smart decisions with the ball in his hands and never seemed fazed by the magnitude of the moment.
When it was all said and done, Nunn recorded 19 points (11 in the fourth) on 8-of-16 shooting, a team-high eight assists, five rebounds, a steal and a plus-seven rating.
3. Robinson Stays Versatile
After having a little bit of a slow start to the contest, Duncan Robinson flipped the script in the third quarter and scored nine points in short order.
And while that was good to see, Robinson also made some nice passes off the dribble and came through with some solid segments of defense, including this contest in transition early in the fourth:
Robinson finished with 14 points, three boards and three assists.
Other Takeaways:
-Yante Maten showed nice touch inside and scored the HEAT’s first seven points of the game. The 22-year-old ended up with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting, a team-high 13 rebounds, two assists, one block and a team-high plus-14 rating.
Game Notes:
-KZ Okpala sat out.
-With the win, Miami is 3-0 in Vegas and likely to make the quarterfinals.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will face the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday at 7:00 PM. Television coverage will be on NBA TV.