Jimmy Butler scored a game-high 22 points, Tyler Herro returned to action to contribute 17 points and the visiting Miami Heat defeated the Houston Rockets 119-104 on Friday night.
Miami (43-34) outscored Houston 56-34 in the paint.
Herro played 25 minutes off the bench — his first action since Feb. 23. He missed 20 games due to a foot injury.
“It wasn’t a huge injury,” Herro said after making 7 of 14 shots in the Friday victory. “It just kept lingering on, but I’m glad to be back with my teammates.”
Miami also got 18 points, 12 rebounds and six assists from Bam Adebayo.
Houston (38-39), which lost its fourth straight game, was led by Jalen Green, who scored 21 points but shot just 2-for-9 from 3-point range. He made 6 of 18 shots overall.
Fred VanVleet had 13 points and a team-high eight assists. Houston’s Dillon Brooks scored 18 points, and Jabari Smith Jr. logged 15 points and eight rebounds.
Miami held a 93-83 edge heading into the fourth quarter. For the first three quarters, the Heat hammered the ball inside, building a 46-24 advantage on paint points.
Houston cut its deficit to as little as four points early in the fourth quarter, but the Heat soon pulled away with a 12-0 run.
For the game, Miami shot 49.4 percent from the floor, including 13-for-36 on 3-point attempts (36.1 percent).
Houston shot 37.8 percent, including 14-for-44 from long distance (31.8 percent).
The score was tied 27-27 after a first quarter in which Miami outshot Houston 50 percent to 40.9. However, the Heat were just 1-for-8 on 3-point tries while the Rockets shot 4-for-11 from deep.
Brooks led all first-quarter scorers with 14 points, as he was 3-for-4 from beyond the arc.
Miami led 64-59 at halftime, although VanVleet banked in a 19-footer at the buzzer.
Brooks was held scoreless in seven second-quarter minutes, missing his only shot.
–Field Level Media
