Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) blocks a pass intended for Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins (20) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, March 4, 2023, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) (Marta Lavandier, AP)
A night after the sky was falling, the Miami Heat regained their footing Saturday, with a needed 117-109 victory over the Atlanta Hawks at Miami-Dade Arena.
Of course, in typical 2022-23 Heat fashion, nothing came easy, with it becoming the Heat’s league-leading 45th clutch game of the season (one within five points at any point within the final five minutes).
But with Bam Adebayo stabilizing matters with high-percentage paint play and with Tyler Herro creating offense when needed, the Heat avoided falling to the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
“Man, we got perseverance,” Adebayo said. “We got resilience.”
The victory moved the Heat to a 2-1 lead in the season series, with the teams to meet again Monday night on the Heat’s court.
Adebayo led the Heat with 30 points and 11 rebounds, supported by 20 points from Tyler Herro, with Jimmy Butler filling the box score with 15 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
“This might be a domino to a couple more,” Adebayo said.
The Heat defense also had its moments, stifling Hawks’ scoring leader Trae Young to eight points on 2-of-13 shooting.
“To get the win was important, and that’s only halfway there,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We know we have a really big game against this same team on Monday.”
Five Degrees of Heat from Saturday’s game:
1. Closing time: The Heat led 29-26 at the end of the opening period, despite committing eight first-quarter turnovers and then pushed their lead to 66-49 at the intermission.
“I thought the first half really set the tone for the game,” Spoelstra said.
But after pushing to a 21-point advantage in the third period, the Heat’s lead was down to 87-75, as Butler took his customary rest at the start of the fourth.
Butler then returned with 7:05 to play, with the Heat’s lead down to 99-94. A Caleb Martin 3-pointer and an Adebayo dunk moved the Heat to a 104-94 lead from there.
Eventually the Hawks got within the five points needed to make it a “clutch” game, but this never got too clutch, the Heat up to a 12-point lead with 2:44 remaining.
“I think it just speaks volumes to our mental toughness as a unit,” Herro said of bouncing back from the loss to the Knicks.
2. Bam back: After an uneven game against the Knicks, Adebayo was aggressive and efficient, which was needed with Hawks center Clint Capela also filling the box score.
After waiting for the third quarter to make his move Friday against the Knicks, Adebayo this time scored 13 points in the second period, also scoring in double figures in the fourth.
Adebayo’s first rebound of the fourth quarter gave him a double-double.
“I had a bad couple of games,” Adebayo said, “so it’s good to bounce back.”
He closed 10 of 12 from both the field and foul line, more than offsetting the 16 points and 13 rebounds from Capela.
“We were able to get him some easy baskets at the rim,” Spoelstra said of Adebayo.
3. Trae stoppers: Having developed a swarming and synchronized game plan against Young, including during last season’s 4-1 opening-round playoff win, the Heat again stifled the Hawks guard in the first half, limiting him to three points on 1-of-4 shooting.
Young then fell to 1 of 9 going into the fourth quarter, later dipping to 1 of 12.
To his credit, he compensated with a game-high 10 assists, adding five steals.
“Everything that we do is basically in our defensive package against all the great players,” Spoelstra said, with the Heat mostly handling Young out of their base defense.
4. Zeller time: Amid a season when relief has been significantly limited in the middle when Adebayo has gone to the bench, Cody Zeller bought the Heat plenty of time in a 13-point first half that saw him go 4 of 4 from the field and 5 of 6 from the line in his 9:58.
“Cody’s just really steady,” Spoelstra said. “He’s an experienced, winning player.”
Not only has Zeller provided an upgrade on recently dealt Dewayne Dedmon, but Omer Yurtseven put together a second consecutive double-double Saturday night in his rehab assignment with the G League.
“I just want to bring energy to the court when I step on the court,” Zeller said. “I felt a little rusty my first few games, but tonight I felt like I settled in.”
5. Support system: With Martin putting together a second consecutive solid effort, this time with 15 points, the Heat bench proved a fundamental truth, that the Heat can win if it even is merely functional.
“Since we made the change,” Spoelstra said of Martin going to the bench in favor of recently acquired Kevin Love, “he’s been one of the consistent bright spots in our rotation.”
With Victor Oladipo contributing six assists, there was enough there to keep the starters fresh on the second night of the back-to-back.
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Originally published at Tribune News Service