MIAMI (AP) — Tyler Herro scored 32 points off the Miami bench, Jimmy Butler finished with 25 points and a career-best 15 assists, and the depleted Heat held off the depleted Washington Wizards 119-112 on Tuesday night.
Duncan Robinson added 26 points for Miami, making eight 3-pointers on a night the Heat got by with an eight-man rotation that might be facing a new challenge after Butler twisted his right ankle with 1:03 remaining.
Kyle Lowry is in the health and safety protocols, Bam Adebayo is out with a thumb injury and now the Heat will start a two-week road trip Wednesday in San Antonio with Butler either missing or quite possibly ailing.
Spencer Dinwiddie scored 24 points and Kyle Kuzma had 22 for Washington. Davis Bertans scored 19, Daniel Gafford finished with 16 and Corey Kispert added 14 for the Wizards.
The win was the 629th for Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, breaking a tie with Doug Moe for outright possession of 25th on the NBA's career list. Spoelstra is now within nine wins of No. 24 Chuck Daly.
Washington trailed by 28 in the third quarter, cut the deficit to 18 by the end of that period and got to 109-101 when Kispert hit a 3-pointer with 2:12 remaining.
But Butler got to his spot in the right corner, ball-faked Kuzma into the air and connected on a 15-footer on the next Miami possession, helping ensure the Heat would finish off the 4-0 homestand.
Both teams were without eight players,
The Wizards were without Bradley Beal, Thomas Bryant, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Rui Hachimura, Montrezl Harrell, Anthony Gill, Aaron Holiday and Raul Neto — all because of the league’s health and safety protocols.
Miami was without Lowry, Udonis Haslem and Max Strus because of protocols, plus Adebayo, P.J. Tucker, Dewayne Dedmon, Markieff Morris and Victor Oladipo because of injuries.
“When things happen or things change, you’ve just got to adjust to it and overcome it," Strus said Tuesday, a few hours before game time. “I mean, that’s what we’re really working with in the world right now.”
He was intending to play. About an hour before game time, he went into the protocols, and the Heat were down to an eight-man rotation.
“The whole league is adjusting to it," Spoelstra said. “I commend everybody for working together through all of this."
TIP-INS
Wizards: Washington went 24-36 away from home in 2021. ... The Wizards (17-17) are back at .500 for the season. They have yet to be under .500 at any point in the 2021-22 campaign, after not spending a single day over .500 in each of the previous three seasons. ... Washington’s biggest deficit was 28 points, making this the fourth game this season the Wizards trailed by at least that many.
Heat: Miami went 31-20 at home in 2021. ... The Heat didn’t commit their first turnover until 5:12 remained in the half. ... Miami had 65 points by halftime for the 100th time in franchise history, improving to 79-21 when it happens. The Heat have done it four times this month alone, tying second-most in team history for any month, joining May 2021 and January 2020. Miami had six such first halves in November 2019.
ON THE CALL
Jenna Schroeder —
WAITING FOR RUI
The Wizards were hopeful that Hachimura, who hasn’t played a “real” game since the Tokyo Olympics, might be able to make his season debut Tuesday. He never had a chance; Hachimura going into the protocols delayed that for at least a few more days. “I feel like he’s in a good spot. This is just kind of a little speed bump right now where he can’t be with us and be potentially available,” Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr. said.
UP NEXT
Wizards: Host Cleveland on Thursday, starting a four-game homestand.
Heat: Visit San Antonio on Wednesday, opening a seven-game, two-week road trip.
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