Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 142-132 win over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night night at Kaseya Center to snap a three-game losing skid and improve to 1-1 during its three-game homestand.
The Heat closes the homestand with another matchup against the Pacers on Saturday: The Heat trailed for most of the game, but turned around its season-long fourth-quarter struggles to rally for the victory.
The Pacers entered with the NBA’s top offensive rating while playing as the fastest pace in the league. Like most teams, the Heat struggled to slow the Pacers’ offense down at the start.
After a 38-point first quarter, the Pacers scored another 35 points in the second quarter to enter halftime with 73 points on an ultra-efficient 61.4 percent shooting from the field and 7-of-16 (43.8 percent) shooting from three-point range. But the Heat managed to stay within striking distance with the help of its own efficient first half.
The Heat took advantage of a Pacers team that entered with the NBA’s third-worst defensive rating, scoring 64 points on 53.5 percent shooting from the field in the first two quarters. The result was a nine-point Pacers lead entering halftime.
The Heat, which trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half cut, continued to cut into that lead with the help of a 16-point third quarter from Jimmy Butler to enter the final period trailing by just three. The Heat continued that momentum in the fourth quarter, taking its first lead of the night with 10:07 left in the fourth quarter.
The Heat began the final period on a 28-9 run to take full control of the game and pull ahead by 16 points with 4:11 to play. The Pacers had one last push in them, cutting the deficit to six points multiple times in the final minute of the game but that’s the closest they got.
The Heat, which entered with the NBA’s second-worst fourth-quarter net rating this season, won Thursday behind a dominant fourth quarter. Miami outscored Indiana 45-32 in the final period to turn a three-point deficit at the start of the fourth quarter into a 10-point win.
The Heat didn’t miss many shots down the stretch, shooting 15 of 18 (83.3 percent) from the field, 2 of 2 on threes and 13-of-14 shooting from the foul line in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback win.
The Heat’s season-high 142 points against a poor Pacers defense was enough to overcome a career-high 44-point performance from Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton. It helps that Butler matched a season-high with 36 points in the win, including 24 in the second half, after missing the previous two games with a sprained right ankle. Butler also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out three assists in 38 minutes.
Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. continued his strong rookie season with 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 7-of-7 from the foul line off the bench. Jaquez totaled 14 points in the fourth quarter.
Thursday marked the 17th time in franchise history that the Heat has allowed 73 or more points in a first half, counting the regular season and playoffs. It also marked the the Heat’s first win in those situations, improving to 1-16 in those games.
But the Heat’s win didn’t come without some bad news, as starting center Bam Adebayo left Thursday’s win early after re-aggravated his hip injury. Adebayo went to the bench with 6:56 left in the second quarter and walked back to the Heat’s locker room with a team trainer.
Adebayo never returned to the bench or game. The Heat ruled Adebayo for the rest of the night at halftime with a left hip contusion. Before exiting the game, Adebayo recorded seven points, four rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes.
What makes Adebayo’s injury especially concerning is the fact that he has already missed three games this season with a left hip contusion — an Oct. 30 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, a Nov. 22 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers and Saturday’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Adebayo initially hurt his hip during the first week of the season and missed that Oct. 30 games.
He then he re-aggravated the injury in a Nov. 20 win over the Chicago Bulls, forcing him to miss two of the next three games. Adebayo returned to score a season-high 31 points in Tuesday’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, but he got hit in the left hip during the second quarter on Thursday and left the Heat’s win early.
Losing Adebayo for any amount of time is a big blow to the Heat. Along with being at the center of the Heat’s defense, Adebayo entered Thursday averaging a team-high 23.3 points to go with 10.3 rebounds, four assists, 1.3 steals and 1.1 blocks per game this season.
Without Adebayo, the Heat began Thursday’s second half with Thomas Bryant in his place. Bryant, who has fallen out of the Heat’s rotation after opening the season as the backup center, recorded two points and four rebounds in six minutes. Before Thursday’s opportunity, Bryant had received six DNP-CDs (did not play, coach’s decision) in the previous 10 games.
The Heat also played Kevin Love and Orlando Robinson at center during the second half with Adebayo unavailable. Butler Butler and Haywood Highsmith made their returns after missing time with injuries. Butler missing the previous two games with a sprained right ankle and Highsmith missed one game with a lower back contusion before both returned to play against the Pacers. Highsmith also returned to the starting lineup, closing with two points, one rebound and one assist in 15 minutes. With Butler and Highsmith back, the Heat returned to the starting lineup of Kyle Lowry, Duncan Robinson, Butler, Highsmith and Bam Adebayo on Thursday.
The Heat improved to 4-1 this season with this starting group. The only Heat players unavailable against the Pacers were Tyler Herro (right ankle sprain), Dru Smith (season-ending right knee ACL injury) and R.J. Hampton (right knee sprain). Adebayo then joined that list after leaving Thursday’s win early.
The Heat and Pacers will face off again at Kaseya Center in a few days. The Pacers will stay in Miami to take on the Heat at Kaseya Center on Saturday. It marks the second of six times this season that the Heat will play the same opponent in consecutive games — three coming at home, two happening on the road and one split between home and away.
The Heat already played one of these two game sets this season, splitting a pair of matchups against the Bulls in Chicago on Nov. 18 and 20. The Heat and Pacers will meet only one more time in the regular season after their two games in Miami this week — on April 7 in Indianapolis. The Pacers are one of four Eastern Conference teams that the Heat will only face three times this season instead of the usual four regular-season matchups. The others are the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks.
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