17-0 run propels Jimmy Butler, Heat past Spurs
Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat in action against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 29, 2021 in New York City. Mike Stobe/Getty Images/AFP
Jimmy Butler scored a game-high 29 points and the host Miami Heat used a 17-0 second-half run to rally past the San Antonio Spurs 116-111 on Wednesday night.
Bam Adebayo added 21 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for the Heat.
Article continues after this advertisementSan Antonio’s Dejounte Murray posted his fourth triple-double of the season with 22 points, a game-high 11 assists and 10 rebounds. He scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, but the Spurs — who entered the game with the NBA’s second-best road record at 18-10 — couldn’t stop Miami.
"I love the people I work with."@MiamiHEAT coach Erik Spoelstra reflects on his journey thus far after reaching 600 wins as a Head Coach. pic.twitter.com/ghbrrlm7vO
— NBA (@NBA) April 29, 2021
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra earned career win No. 600. Only four other active coaches have more victories than Spoelstra.
Article continues after this advertisementKendrick Nunn, Goran Dragic and Dewayne Dedmon all had 18 points for the Heat (33-30). Nunn had missed Miami’s previous game due to neck spasms. Dragic dished out a team-high seven assists, and Dedmon’s point total was a season high.
San Antonio (31-30) had its three-game win streak snapped. DeMar DeRozan added 20 points and eight assists for the Spurs while Lonnie Walker IV, a former Miami Hurricanes star, had 18 points off the bench.
Miami shot 59.1 percent in the first quarter and grabbed an early 14-point lead. By the end of the quarter, Miami was on top 31-20, holding San Antonio to 42.1 percent shooting.
Walker made two consecutive 3-pointers to give San Antonio its first lead of the game, 39-38 with 6:28 left in the second.
The @MiamiHEAT prevail vs. SAS behind @JimmyButler & @Bam1of1! #HEATTwitter
Buckets: 29 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST
Bam: 21 PTS, 11 REB pic.twitter.com/ESBBgtQuXc— NBA (@NBA) April 29, 2021
Miami went into halftime with a 55-54 edge thanks to Dragic’s banked-in 3-pointer at the buzzer. Adebayo’s 14 points led all scorers at the break.
San Antonio led by as many as seven points in the third quarter, but Miami ended the period on a 15-0 run, taking a 82-74 lead into the fourth.
The Heat kept that run going early in the fourth and then held on for the victory.
For the game, Miami shot 50.6 percent from the floor and outscored San Antonio 60-44 in the paint. The Spurs shot 46.6 percent.
