NBA: Bam Adebayo scores 24 to help Heat dominate Nets

Bam Adebayo totaled 24 points and nine rebounds as the visiting Miami Heat dominated inside and recorded a 106-93 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night in New York.

Adebayo highlighted an 8-for-17 showing by converting four dunks. He hit consecutive dunks to put Miami up 98-89 with about 3 1/2 minutes left.

Jimmy Butler supported Adebayo's big night with a stellar all-around showing. He added 17 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and four steals.

The big nights by Butler and Adebayo helped Miami to a commanding 62-42 rebounding margin.

P.J. Tucker added 15 points and seven boards as the Heat survived shooting 39.6 percent. Dewayne Dedmon and Tyler Herro added 14 points apiece as Miami scored 48 in the paint.

Kevin Durant led all scorers with 25 points, but the Nets shot just 38.8 percent and scored two baskets in the final 4:33. The Nets lost for the third time in five games this season, and each loss has been by double digits.

Joe Harris contributed 15 points and James Harden chipped in 14 for Brooklyn, which shot 32.6 percent from behind the arc.

Miami held a 29-22 lead after the first quarter by ending the period with a 14-4 run over the last 4:59. A basket by Butler put Miami up 41-29 with 7:07 left in the second, but the Nets ended the first half with a 22-8 run and held a 51-49 lead by halftime after Blake Griffin converted a 3-point play with 34.4 seconds remaining.

Miami ripped off 14 straight points for a 63-57 lead on a 3-pointer by Duncan Robinson with 7:38 left. The Heat held an 81-74 lead into the fourth after Harris missed a 3-pointer right before the buzzer.

-reuters-

NBA: Bam Adebayo wins it at the horn, as Heat top Nets

Bam Adebayo's step-back 14-foot jumper from the baseline at the buzzer lifted the Miami Heat to a 109-107 victory at home against the Brooklyn Nets in a matchup of shorthanded teams on Sunday afternoon.

Adebayo finished with 21 points, 15 rebounds and five assists to help the Heat snap a three-game losing streak despite playing without Jimmy Butler, who sat out with a sprained right ankle.

Landry Shamet scored a career-high 30 points and made 7-of-12 3-pointers to lead the Nets, who lost Kevin Durant early to injury.

Durant scored the Nets' first eight points before exiting the game with 7:57 left in the first quarter with what was diagnosed as a left thigh contusion. Durant banged his left knee against Heat forward Trevor Ariza's knee on a drive to the basket.

Shamet's output and Kyrie Irving's 20 points and nine assists was nearly enough for the Nets, who were already without James Harden (hamstring) for the sixth consecutive game. Joe Harris scored 12 points.

But after Goran Dragic's coast-to-coast layup tied the game at 107 with 43.6 seconds left, Irving missed a go-ahead 3-point attempt from the top of the key with 24.3 seconds remaining with Adebayo defending him.

Adebayo then held the ball at the other end and dribbled into the paint with two seconds left and fired up his winning shot.

Dragic finished with 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Dewayne Dedmon totaled 10 points and 10 rebounds off Miami's bench. Kendrick Nunn made five of the Heat's 16 triples and finished with 17 points while Ariza had 15 points and nine rebounds. Duncan Robinson scored 11 points.

Durant, a 11-time All-Star, returned to the Nets' lineup April 7 after a 23-game absence due to a hamstring injury. He played in four of Brooklyn's previous five games and averaged 23.8 points, 6.3 assists and 5.3 rebounds during that span.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said pregame that Butler was day-to-day. It's unclear if he will be able to play Monday night when Miami hosts the Houston Rockets.

-reuters-