MIAMI (AP) — Bam Adebayo had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Pelle Larsson scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and the Miami Heat beat the Houston Rockets 115-105 on Saturday.
Tyler Herro scored 18, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 14 and Kel’el Ware had a 13-point, 15-rebound game for the Heat. Andrew Wiggins — who needed eight stitches to close a laceration inside his mouth — had 12 points for Miami.
Kevin Durant finished with 32 points, eight assists
and six rebounds for the Rockets, who got 20 points from Amen Thompson and 14 from Reed Sheppard.
Both teams had double-digit leads early; the Rockets ran out to a quick 14-4 edge, the Heat answered with a 37-14 run to take a 41-28 lead. And then things settled down, with the sides staying relatively close the rest of the way.
Neither team had a double-digit lead in the second half until Larsson hit a pair of free throws with 1:52 left for a 113-103 lead.
The Rockets played without Jabari Smith Jr., sidelined with a sprained right ankle. He isn't expected to play in Washington on Monday either.
“We'll target when we return home,” said Rockets coach Ime Udoka, who put Sheppard into the starting lineup in Smith's place.
Meanwhile, Miami was without Norman Powell — who'll miss at least one week with a right groin strain, sustained Thursday in a Heat loss at Philadelphia. Herro, who has been working his way back from injury as well, got the start in Powell's spot.
“I feel for Norm because he wants to be out there for all the games, especially these moments right now," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We’ll treat him and we’ll see where he is after the week.”
Rockets: Visit Washington on Monday.
Heat: Host Brooklyn on Tuesday.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
