The Miami Heat beat the Brooklyn Nets 115-111 for their fifth straight win.
The Heat took control with a 23-8 run bridging the second and third quarters and led by as many as 21.
The Nets got within 112-111 on Kyrie Irving’s 2 free throws with 15 seconds to play, but Jimmy Butler III answered with a free throw, and the Nets got no closer. They had the ball down 2 with 13 seconds left, but Kyle Lowry stole the ball from Cam Thomas, lifting the Heat’s chance to win from 89% to 95%. A basket would have tied the game.
During clutch time, the Heat outscored the Nets 7-6. In the fourth quarter, Kessler Edwards had 2 of his 3 steals, and the Nets scored 3 points off them.
Duncan Robinson scored 17 points (15 on 5 3-pointers) on 6 for 10 shooting. The Heat had 7 players in double-digit scoring.
For the Nets, Irving scored 29 points, and Edwards went 1 for 7 from 3. Thomas scored 22 points off the bench. Irving scored 20 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter.
The Heat shot 50.0% from the field and 34.5% from 3 to the Nets’ 45.2% and 30.0%. The Nets outscored the Heat 26-7 off turnovers. The Nets’ starters were outscored 37-22 in 14 minutes together.