The Miami Heat fell to the Toronto Raptors for a second straight game on Thursday night with a 128-114 score. The Raptors continue their surprising campaign as one of the stronger teams in the Eastern Conference. Toronto defeated Miami on Tuesday night as well with a 121-95 score.
For the Heat, Bam Adebayo was the leading points scorer with 24 points along with 11 rebounds and eight assists. He came very close to a triple-double stat line. There was a five-game stretch at the end of March where he put up a double-double and he continued his strong season on Thursday night. The next most points on the team is a three-way tie with Tyler Herro, Davion Mitchell and Jaime Jaquez Jr. off the bench. Mitchell and Herro both started. Despite missing most of the season, Herro has still been one of the team's leading scorers. While Norman Powell continues to work his way back from his groin injury and separate illness, Mitchell and Pelle Larsson have taken on larger offensive loads. Most players had a negative plus-minus except for the guys at the end of the rotation including Myron Gardner, Keshad Johnson, Vladislav Goldin, Trevor Keels and Jahmir Young who all finished with +11. With those guys seeing action, the Heat ran a 14-man rotation.
As a team, the Heat shot 56 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point range and 57 percent from the free throw line. Adebayo, Mitchell and Larsson led the team in minutes. The Heat were outscored by Toronto in every quarter except for the third quarter. Simone Fontecchio, Dru Smith and Nikola Jovic did not receive minutes Thursday night.
For the Raptors, Brandon Ingram led the team in scoring with 38 points along with seven rebounds and seven assists. R.J. Barrett followed him with 22 points. They continue to shock most of the NBA with their 45-35 record. The Heat will next travel to Washington D.C. to wrap up their regular season series against the Wizards. With a win on Friday, they would sweep Washington in their four games played this season. With their Play-In status confirmed at this point, these final two regular season games don't mean much.
Join the Community
Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!
It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!