Heat hold off Hornets thanks to Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler scored 32 points and the Miami Heat won their sixth game in a row by holding off the host Charlotte Hornets for a 111-105 victory on Tuesday night.
Bam Adebayo had 21 points and 11 rebounds and Duncan Robinson made four 3-pointers on the way to 18 points for Miami. Jaime Jaquez Jr. poured in 17 points off the bench, while Haywood Highsmith had 12.
Butler made 10 of 14 shots from the field and 11 of 14 free throws in the final game of the Heat’s four-game road trip.
P.J. Washington drained six treys and netted 32 points to pace the Hornets. Teammate LaMelo Ball flirted with a triple-double, going for 28 points, 11 assists and six rebounds.
Bryce McGowens notched 12 points off the Charlotte bench, Mark Williams added 11 points and Nick Richards provided 10 points and 12 rebounds.
The Hornets, opening a five-game homestand, went 15-for-32 from beyond the arc compared to Miami’s 8-for-31 performance from long range.
But Charlotte committed 18 turnovers, while the Heat were charged with only seven. Ball was tagged with eight of the Hornets’ turnovers.
Butler scored six points in the last two minutes of the game despite going 4-for-6 from the free-throw line during that stretch. He also had five points in the final 2:11 of the third quarter as he seemed to find energy at the right times.
Charlotte was within 87-83 in the opening minute of the fourth quarter after Ball’s 3-pointer. Jaquez soon scored six straight points, and the Hornets went over two minutes without scoring.
On two of the occasions in which Charlotte got within four points down the stretch, Adebayo and Robinson responded to fend off those rallies. The Hornets continued to stay close, but Butler heated up to keep them at a distance.
The Heat used a huge second quarter to build a 57-48 halftime lead. That included a 15-4 run to end the first half, with Butler banking in a 3-pointer from about 35 feet away at the first-half buzzer.
The Hornets scored 32 first-quarter points, but they only had half as many in the second quarter.
This article first appeared on Field Level Media and was syndicated with permission.
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