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Tag: Edrice Adebayo

  • Adebayo scores 30, Heat storm back to stun Suns 113-112

    Adebayo scores 30, Heat storm back to stun Suns 113-112

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    MIAMI — Elite scorer. Elite defender.

    Devin Booker got to his spot. Jimmy Butler got there, too. And Butler rose to the moment, capping a brilliant comeback win for the Miami Heat.

    Bam Adebayo scored 30 points, including a pair of go-ahead free throws with 35 seconds left, and Butler’s block was part of a frantic finish as the Heat rallied from a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Phoenix Suns 113-112 on Monday night.

    “Those two guys are really the foundational heartbeat pieces to our team,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We follow their warrior spirits. They’re just so tough, the epitome of being two-way basketball players.”

    Phoenix had three shots to win on its final possession — a missed layup by Cameron Payne, the jumper from Booker from the right elbow that Butler blocked, and then a 3-pointer from Booker that bounced off the rim, with Butler hounding him again.

    “Tough break for us,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “Our guys fought like heck to have a chance to win.”

    Butler finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for Miami. Caleb Martin and Kyle Lowry each scored 15 for Miami, which got back to .500 at 7-7.

    “I love the fact that we won this game on the defensive end,” Butler said.

    Adebayo outscored the Suns by himself in the last eight minutes, 12-10. Phoenix missed 12 of its 16 shots in that span, while Miami finished 8 for its last 12.

    Booker led the Suns with 25 points. Duane Washington Jr. added 21 and Deandre Ayton finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Suns, who shot only four free throws compared to Miami’s 25.

    “That is hard to swallow … a physical game like that, where everybody’s bumpin’, we only get four free throws,” Williams said. “This is becoming really hard to swallow. You feel like you can’t even talk about it because you’re going to be fined.”

    The Heat went 22 for 25 on those tries from the line, the 13th consecutive game where they shot at least 80% from the stripe — extending their franchise record.

    It was the first time an NBA team shot four free throws in a game since May 16, 2021 — also the Suns, against San Antonio.

    Torrey Craig’s layup with 8:03 left put Phoenix up 102-89, the Suns’ biggest lead of the night. The Heat outscored Phoenix 24-10 the rest of the way.

    “We’ve had tests all year, and some of those games we didn’t finish,” Adebayo said. “They were nothing but experience for a game like this.”

    Both teams were missing key guards. Miami’s Tyler Herro was out for the fourth consecutive game with a sprained left ankle, and Phoenix’s Chris Paul sat with right heel soreness.

    TIP-INS

    Suns: The Suns don’t believe Paul’s heel issue is long-term. “Day-to-day,” coach Monty Williams said. … Phoenix lost back-to-back games for the first time this season. … The Suns had been 7-0 in games in which they led by at least 13 points.

    Heat: Among those in the crowd — Wayne Gretzky, Odell Beckham Jr. and Melvin Ingram. … Dewayne Dedmon had 12 for the Heat, including a pair of 3-pointers late in the third to stop a Phoenix run. … Adebayo also had 10 rebounds.

    LOWRY 2K

    Lowry’s first 3-pointer was the 2,000th of his career. He’s the 12th player in NBA history to make that many.

    BIRTHDAY REF

    South Florida native Dedric Taylor was one of the referees, working on his 47th birthday. Taylor worked for the City of North Miami Beach Parks & Recreation Department and was a UPS driver before getting into the NBA.

    UP NEXT

    Suns: Host Golden State on Wednesday

    Heat: Visit Toronto on Wednesday.

    ———

    More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Kings outlast Heat 119-113, win first game of Mike Brown era

    Kings outlast Heat 119-113, win first game of Mike Brown era

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    SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kevin Huerter scored 27 points, hitting seven 3-pointers, to help the Sacramento Kings win their first game of the season with a 119-113 victory over the Miami Heat on Saturday.

    It’s the first win for Kings coach Mike Brown, who was hired this past offseason. The Los Angles Lakers are the last winless team in the NBA.

    Kings rookie Keegan Murray scored a career-best 22 points.

    With the Kings up four points, Huerter was fouled with 14.2 seconds left. He made both free throws to extend Sacramento’s lead to six and seal the win.

    De’Aaron Fox had scored 27 points or more during the Kings’ first four games of the season. He finished with 17 points and added 13 rebounds, a career-high.

    Domantas Sabonis picked up two early fouls in the third quarter and sat with five fouls until the early fourth. Sabonis finished with 18 points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes. He fouled out with 5:52 left.

    Harrison Barnes scored 11 points. All five Sacramento starters scored in double-figures.

    Tyler Herro led the Heat (2-5) with 34 points and knocked down five 3-pointers. Bam Adebayo added 23 points and Kyle Lowry had 15.

    Jimmy Butler scored 13 points, his lowest scoring output of the season.

    After Sacramento went up 42-33 with 7:28 in the second quarter, they ended the first half on a 29-13 run to stretch the lead to 22 at the break.

    The Heat outscored Sacramento 33-19 in the third, which cut the Sacramento lead to six. Miami cut the lead to as close as one after a Herro And-1.

    KENTUCKY REUNION

    For the first time in an NBA regular season game, Malik Monk, Fox and Adebayo shared the court together The trio played together during the 2016-17 season at Kentucky. The Wildcats reached the regional final that year.

    TIP-INS

    Heat: F/C Dewayne Dedmon missed Saturday’s game with a non-COVID illness. Dedmon played 34 games with Sacramento during the 2019-20 season… Miami coming in had won three of four against Sacramento.

    Kings: Brown successfully won a challenge in the first quarter when a foul was called on Sabonis. It was changed to an offensive foul on Adebayo… Sacramento coming in had committed the 5th most fouls in the NBA, averaging 23.8 per game. They had BLANK against Miami… Kings shot a season-low BLANK 3-pointers.

    UP NEXT

    Heat: Hosts Golden State on Tuesday.

    Kings: Start a four-game road trip and play the Hornets Monday.

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    More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Heat snap Blazers four-game winning streak with 119-98 win

    Heat snap Blazers four-game winning streak with 119-98 win

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    PORTLAND, Ore. — Bam Adebayo scored 18 points and the Miami Heat snapped Portland’s four-game winning streak with a 119-98 victory on Wednesday night.

    Damian Lillard had 22 points for Portland when he came up limping with just over five minutes to go in the third quarter and headed straight for the locker room. He did not return and the Blazers later announced he had a right calf strain.

    Lillard, a six-time All-Star, said he felt tightness in his calf before the game. While he is not likely to play Friday when the Blazers host the Rockets, he does not expect to miss any more games.

    “I mean honestly, if this was a playoff game I would have played,” Lillard said.

    Kyle Lowry and Jimmy Butler each had 17 points for the Heat, who led by as many as 26 points. Six Miami players were in double figures.

    “Before the game we were locked in,” Butler said. “That’s how we win, that’s the winning formula. It feels good.”

    Rookie Shaedon Sharpe had 15 points and eight rebounds for Portland, which had won each of its first four games to open the season for the first time since 1999. The Blazers were the last remaining undefeated team in the Western Conference.

    It was a close first half. Jerami Grant hit a 3-pointer to give the Blazers a 44-36 lead, but Tyler Herro answered with a 3 for Miami.

    Herro made a running jumper then added a free throw to put Miami in front 52-51, and the Heat went on to lead 61-56 at the half. Herro finished with 14 points.

    The Heat went up 81-70 on Butler’s dunk midway through the third quarter. Without Lillard, the Blazers struggled offensively the rest of the way.

    “The turnovers at that time really killed us, and then they got out on the break and started getting a whole bunch of transition threes, and they opened up the lead at that point,” Blazers guard Anfernee Simons. “So I think it was just a little bit of us being careless with the basketball.”

    Miami made a season-high 15 3-pointers in the game.

    “We put it together on both ends,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We’ve been doing some better things. In the last two games you’ve seen our energy level go up.”

    Portland was coming off a 135-110 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. Anfernee Simons had 22 points, including six 3-pointers, in the third quarter to pull away, and Portland held Nikola Jokic to nine points.

    TIP INS

    Heat: Caleb Martin and Nikola Jovic returned after a one-game suspension by the league for their roles in a scuffle with the Raptors on Saturday night. … It was the first of a three-game Western road trip for the Heat. The Heat were without Omer Yurtseven (ankle) and Victor Oladipo (knee), both of whom haven’t played this season.

    Trail Blazers: Justise Winslow was available for the Blazers after sitting out of Monday’s game against the Nuggets with a sore ankle. … Simons finished with 14 points.

    UP NEXT

    Heat: Miami visits Golden State on Thursday.

    Trail Blazers: Portland hosts Houston on Friday.

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    More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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