Tyler Herro scored a career-high 41 points while Jimmy Butler delivered an exceptional two-way performance as the Miami Heat extended their road winning streak to three with a 111-108 victory over the Houston Rockets on Thursday.
After matching his career high of 35 points while making a career-best nine 3-pointers on Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Herro drilled 10 3s while shooting 13 of 20 overall. His sharpshooting repeatedly turned back Houston, and his back-to-back 3s early in the fourth quarter silenced a Rockets run that netted an 87-86 lead on a Tari Eason baseline dunk.
Butler was equally dynamic. He finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, four steals and three blocks to coauthor the victory, one that came with the Heat missing starters Kyle Lowry and Bam Adebayo. Upon his return midway through the fourth, Butler notched a steal, a block, a transition layup and an assist all within the first two minutes of reentering the game.
The Rockets did not surrender their five-game home winning streak without a fight. After falling behind 111-99 with five minutes remaining, Houston answered with a 9-0 closing run but Kevin Porter Jr. missed a 3 with 4.1 seconds left that would have pulled the Rockets even.
Jalen Green led the Rockets with 22 points but shot just 8 for 21. Porter added 21 points and seven rebounds while Jabari Smith Jr. chipped in a double-double of 15 points and 11 boards.
Herro singlehandedly erased what was the Rockets’ largest lead of the first half at 24-15 when Green completed a three-point play at the 3:07 mark of the opening period. Herro scored 14 consecutive points for the Heat, drilling three 3s and five free throws to help Miami forge a 29-29 tie entering the second. Herro scored 17 points in the first quarter on 4-of-6 3-point shooting.
Herro ran his scoring total to 25 points by the intermission but it was Butler who helped the Heat secure a 66-52 lead at the break. Butler had his fingerprints all over an 11-3 run that helped Miami seize its first double-digit lead at 53-43, contributing a dunk, a block and an assist during the run. Butler concluded the first half with 13 points, six offensive rebounds and four assists.
–Field Level Media
