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The Miami Heat met the Dallas Mavericks for the first time this season on Thursday. Miami, which has been 5-1 since after the All-Star break, hoped to improve its record and go 1-0 in the head-to-head matchup against Dallas. Tyler Herro remained unavailable for the Heat, but Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo suited up.
Duncan Robinson's hot hand towed Miami to an early lead 36-28 lead. He shot 4-for-4, including 3-for-3 from deep. Terry Rozier backed him up with seven points on 3-for-4 shooting.
Luka Doncic had another quick start, per usual. He had 10 points, two rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes. Kyrie Irving was just right behind him with seven points.
Doncic and Irving's scoring slowed down in the second quarter, but the supporting cast picked up the slack. P.J. Washington, Tim Hardaway Jr., Dante Exum and Daniel Gafford combined for 26 points to give Dallas a big boost.
Caleb Martin and rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. also helped the Miami Heat starters. They had eight points apiece to provide the Heat a lift. Their hustle and energy on both ends also sparked the team's need to grab a 58-54 halftime lead.
Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving continued to lead the way for the Dallas Mavericks on offense. The defense, however, stpped up big in the third quarter and allowed the home team to outscore Miami 37-25 in the said period. Dallas came finished strong to take a 91-83 advantage with still a quarter left to play.
The Miami Heat turned the tables on their opponents in the fourth quarter. It was their turn to limit the Mavericks on offense and crawl to a 101 tie with a little over three minutes left. Terry Rozier's eruption allowed the Heat to have a make the game interesting.
Dallas, however, had a 10-3 run after Miami tied the contest to lead 111-104 with 1:07 in the final period. Following a Heat timeout, Rozier again scored on a layup before Miami had another stellar defensive stand. Bam Adebayo was fouled in the next possesion and despite struggling from the free-throw line, he made both to make it 111-108.
Dante Exum sparkled for Dallas in the final two minutes. He hit two more free throws to add more cushion to the Mavericks' lead with 21.3 seconds remaining. A missed shot by Adebayo allowed the home team to pad the advantage with another free throw off a Miami foul.
Duncan Robinson's missed triple allowed the Dallas Mavericks to escape with a 114-108 win.
Miami Heat vs Dallas Mavericks game player stats and box scores
Miami Heat game player stats
Dallas Mavericks game player stats
Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Jimmy Butler 3-pointers tonight
Luka Doncic went 2-for-4 from deep in the first half, while Kyrie Irving was even worse with a 1-for-4 clip in 3-pointers tonight. Jimmy Butler took only one attempt from behind the arc and made it.
In the second half, Butler took one more 3-point attempt for the Miami Heat but missed. He ended with a 1-for-2 night from that area.
"Luka Legend" continue to fire away without hesitation for the Dallas Mavericks. He ended the night with 7-for-13 3-pointers. Irving wasn't as agressive and settled for 3-for-9 triples.
