The Miami Heat faced the offensively jet-fueled Rockets on Sunday, led by James Harden and Russell Westbrook. Could the Heat keep up with the Houston team?
The Miami Heat came into Sunday’s game against the Houston Rockets fresh off of back to back wins against the Atlanta Hawks. Entering the game with a 4-1 record and against a Houston team that had just lost a tough game against the Brooklyn Nets, the Heat knew they would have their hands full and especially without one of their key players in Justise Winslow. Well, at least they thought so.
The Miami Heat looked like a team that was aware of all the surrounding factors to open the game, while the Houston Rockets looked poor. The game opened with a Miami Heat run that eventually saw the Heat take a 24-4 lead. The exact nature of the Heat run wound up being one of the 17-0 variety.
On top of a hot start by the Miami Heat, the Houston Rockets shot poorly. The first quarter was all Miami heat and it eventually closed with a score of 46-14, a Miami Heat record for points scored in a quarter. After the first, which was all Miami Heat, it was much of the same for the rest of the game.
This one was never really that close. The Miami Heat knew what they were up against in a team that had the capability to come back and they showed it throughout, never taking their feet off of the gas.
Just like the beginning of the game, the Miami Heat pulled a similar move near the end of the game. The Heat opened up the fourth quarter on a 14-2 run. The Rockets saw the writing on the wall slightly into the fourth quarter, putting their second unit into the game with quite a bit of time to go.
The game ended up finishing 129-120, in favor of the Miami Heat of course. As it has seemed to be a constant theme throughout the season, this was another total team effort across the board.
Bam Adebayo had eight points, five rebounds, and five assists. Jimmy Butler had 18 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists. Duncan Robinson had 23 points, six rebounds, and one assist.
Kendrick Nunn had five points, two rebounds, and five assists. James Johnson made his triumphant return with 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Goran Dragic had 15 points, two rebounds, and four assists. Tyler Herro had 12 points to go along with seven rebounds and assists each.
This was another big-time win by this Heat team. It seems that it’s about time that folks started taking this team seriously. They will play their next game against the Nuggets on Tuesday in Denver, and we can’t wait.