Heat too much for shorthanded Bulls
Kyle Lowry #7 and head coach Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat high five against the Utah Jazz during the first half at FTX Arena on November 06, 2021 in Miami, Florida. Michael Reaves/Getty Images/AFP
Duncan Robinson scored a season-high 26 points and Kyle Lowry added a game-high 14 assists to lead the host Miami Heat to a 118-92 win over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Robinson also played in his 174th consecutive regular-season game, tying the franchise record set by Glen Rice from 1992 to 1994.
Article continues after this advertisementMiami ran on Duncan tonight ☕️season-high 26 points from our sharpshooter. pic.twitter.com/ifWVZr79tn
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) December 12, 2021
Chicago’s Zach LaVine scored a game-high 33 points, making 11-for-20 from the floor, including 7-for-11 on 3-pointers.
Lowry scored 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting, including 4-for-5 on 3-pointers. He had 12 assists in the first half. The Heat record for first-half assists is 13 by Jason Williams. Lowry finished the game with just two turnovers.
Article continues after this advertisementRobinson made 9-of-13 shots, including 5-for-9 on 3-pointers.
Heat center Dewayne Dedmon, starting for the injured Bam Adebayo, had a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Strong start and never let off the gas. The Mechanic notched a season-high 20 points & 12 rebounds in tonight's win. 🔧 pic.twitter.com/ZgfzvHxwKG
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) December 12, 2021
Besides Adebayo, Miami is still without Jimmy Butler (tailbone injury).
Chicago played despite having seven of its players in COVID protocols, including Ayo Dosunmu and Stanley Johnson, who were added to the list just prior to Saturday’s game. They joined Bulls star DeMar DeRozan and four other Chicago players on the COVID list.
The Bulls, though, got Alex Caruso back from a hamstring injury, and he started and scored six points in 27 minutes.
Miami’s Caleb Martin, who is on a two-way contract, was put on the COVID protocol list. It was a tough break for Martin, who scored a career-high 28 points against the Bucks on Wednesday.
Robinson scored 13 points in the first quarter as the Heat ended the period leading 39-25. Miami shot 60 percent from the floor, including 9-for-14 on 3-pointers. Herro made a 3-pointer at the buzzer to end the quarter.
Chicago cut its deficit by just one point, trailing 65-52 at halftime. In the first half, Miami shot 52.2 percent from the floor, including 13-for-23 on 3-pointers (56.5 percent).
LaVine led all first-half scorers with 21 points, including 5-of-6 on 3-pointers.
Miami led 86-70 after three quarters was never challenged in the fourth, finishing the game with 44.2 percent shooting on 3-pointers (19-for-43).
