Takeaways and details from Heat's bounce-back road win over Bulls
Published in Basketball
CHICAGO — Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 118-100 win over the Chicago Bulls (5-10) on Monday night at United Center to improve to 1-1 on its five-game trip. The Heat (9-5) continues the trip on Wednesday against the Cavaliers in Cleveland (7:30 p.m., Bally Sports Sun):
The Heat’s offense struggled in Saturday’s loss to the Bulls. On Monday, the Heat’s offense was the driving force behind a win over the Bulls.
The Heat shot 50 percent from the field, 17 of 35 (48.6 percent) from three-point range and 17 of 20 (85 percent) from the foul line on Monday to record its first double-digit win of the season.
The Heat finished the win with an offensive rating of 129.7 points scored per 100 possessions, which is dramatically better than the offensive rating of just 104.3 points per 100 possessions Miami recorded in Saturday’s loss to the Bulls.
After opening a 22-1 lead to begin Saturday’s game in Chicago, the Heat again started strong.
The Heat began Tuesday’s game on a 12-2 run and led by as many as 14 points in the first half. Miami entered halftime ahead by 12 points behind an ultra-efficient shooting display.
The Heat totaled 65 points on 57.1 percent shooting from the field and 8-of-17 shooting (47.1 percent) from three-point range in the first two quarters to set a new season-high for first-half points behind 34 combined points.
But unlike Saturday when the Heat wasted a double-digit fourth-quarter lead, the Bulls never took a lead in Monday’s game.
The Bulls made a third-quarter push to cut the deficit to three, but the Heat responded with a 26-15 run to extend its lead to 14 points with 1:38 left in the period.
The Heat’s lead grew to as many as 24 points in the fourth quarter, allowing star Jimmy Butler to spend the entirety of the final period on the bench.
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