Heat nearly blows 20-point lead, but hangs on to take 3-0 series lead against Pacers
It took the highest scoring half in postseason franchise history and a near collapse in the second half, but the Miami Heat is on the brink of reaching the second round of the 2020 NBA playoffs and its two All-Stars led the way.
A 20-point first-half lead shrunk all the way to two in the fourth quarter before the Heat hung on to beat the Indiana Pacers, 124-115, behind a pair of controlling fourth-quarter performances by Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler in Lake Buena Vista.
“You have to expect it’s going to be a complete, 48-minute game, if not longer, and you’ve got to compete all the way through and our guys had that mindset,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Even though Indiana made a big run in that second half, we were expecting it to be tough.”
The two forwards combined to score 16 straight points late in the fourth before Miami sunk some garbage-time free throws off intentional fouls. Adebayo finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and a steal, and Butler finished with 27 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block, while going 17 of 20 at the free-throw line.
After the up-and-down performance, the Heat is on the brink of reaching the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2016 with a 3-0 lead in the first-round series. Miami, the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference, can advance Monday when it goes for the sweep against the No. 4-seed Pacers at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
The first half was another offensive clinic for the Heat. On Thursday, Miami set a franchise postseason record by draining 18 three-pointers in its Game 2 win in Walt Disney World. On Saturday, the Heat set another franchise playoff record by scoring 74 points in the first half to take a 74-56 lead into the third quarter.
Miami once again did so from long range, going 11 of 20 from beyond the arc in the first half. Guard Goran Dragic made four threes in the first half and finished with 24 points, six assists and three steals, and rookie wing Tyler Herro made two, finishing 20 points.
In the second half, the Heat made just 2 of 13 from three-point range, and a 20-point lead shrunk all the way to two early in the fourth before Adebayo and Butler stabilized Miami with their two-way play.
With 2:19 left, Indiana guard Malcom Brogdon sunk a three to cut the Heat’s lead to 114-112. Miami missed twice on the next possession, but Adebayo grabbed both offensive rebounds, eventually going to the free throw line and sinking two free throws to stretch the lead back to 116-112. On the Pacers’ next possession, T.J. Warren got free on a backdoor cut, but Butler recovered to block the forward at the rim.
Indiana didn’t score again until eight seconds remained and the Heat was running out the clock with a nine-point lead.
This story was originally published August 22, 2020 at 6:34 PM.
