The Miami Heat had season ticket holders in attendance, they had the Clippers without Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, and they had a 14 point lead after the first quarter. All of this seems to add up to a win, correct? Well, spoiler alert, it did not. The Heat fell to the Clippers on Thursday night by a score of 109-105.
Second Quarter Woes
As aforementioned, the Heat got out to a hot start early on. They once led by 14 in the second quarter. But, the Clippers kept chipping away. This 27-15 Clippers run was head manned by their bench unit. Soon, they only trailed by two heading into the half. LA came out hot in the third quarter, outscoring Miami 40-19. Nicholas Batum had 12 of his team-high 18 points in the third quarter. In total, they had 9 threes in the third quarter. It just seemed as if it didn’t matter what the Heat did to contest the shot, it was going in. The score was a whopping 88-69 by the end of the quarter.
Too little, too late for the Heat
In the 4th, the Heat came out flying. They outscored the Clippers 36-21 in that quarter, but it would not end up being enough. The Heat got within 3 with 21.8 seconds left after a Bam Adebayo flush. But, they had to play the fouling game. Reggie Jackson was fouled and went to the line. He made 1 of 2, and the Heat could not get a shot to fall down the other end, and that’s how this one reached its conclusion.
Clippers Box Score
The Clippers had 4 players in double figures for points. Batum had 18 while dishing out 2 assists, snatching two steals, and bringing down 6 boards. Serge Ibaka had 10 points and 13 rebounds in just 26 minutes. Also, Reggie Jackson added 16 points and Terance Mann contributed 12 points as well. While they only shot 41% from the field, they went 17-42 from three, good enough for 40% from the field.
Heat Box Score
Meanwhile for the Heat, Tyler Herro led the team with 19 points and 10 boards, coming off his neck injury. Bam Adebayo collected 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 7 assists. Kendrick Nunn also added 10 points. The Heat shot 44% from the field, which should have been enough, but when you look at how well the Clippers shot, it starts to make sense.
What’s Next:
For the Heat, their next game is at home on Saturday VS the Sacramento Kings. Meanwhile, the Clippers will head just a few cities over to pay a visit to the Orlando Magic on Friday Night.