With a 123-114 overtime win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night, the Heat made their way out of the Play-In and punched their tickets into the first round.
A historic win as Miami became the first 10th seed in NBA history to make it out of the Play-In tournament and into the playoffs.
The Heat will now get set to take on the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference’s one versus eight matchup.
Miami’s leading scorer on the night was Tyler Herro, as the first-time all-star finished with 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. His running mate Bam Adebayo chipped in with 17 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and five blocks. All the while, Davion Mitchell played hero in overtime as his offence and defence injected life into Miami. The starting guard finished with 16 points, nine of which came in OT.
The Heat were able to hold on despite blowing a 17-point lead. The victory flipped the script on their usual woes in the fourth as Miami entered Friday’s contest leading the NBA with 21 blown fourth-quarter leads.
Meanwhile, Atlanta was spearheaded by a breakout effort from Onyeka Okongwu, who put up 28 points on 12-of-19 shooting and 12 rebounds. Star guard Trae Young finished with 29 points and 11 assists, but struggled efficiency-wise as he went nine-of-22 from the field.
Round 1 of the NBA playoffs begins on Saturday, and Game 1 between the Heat and Cavaliers will be on Sunday.
Source link