Heat Drop Fifth Straight Game in Close Contest Against Trail Blazers

The Miami Heat dropped their fifth straight game Thursday night after falling to the Portland Trail Blazers, 125-122.

today was still a good day pic.twitter.com/JGMu7X017u

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) March 26, 2021

Portland Squeaks By

It came down to the wire in Miami on Thursday night. With just one second remaining in the game, Trail Blazers’ guard Damian Lillard was fouled on a three-point attempt by Heat forward Trevor Ariza to send him to the line for three free throws.

Lillard went onto sink all three shots and ultimately helped Portland survive a tightly contested battle.

While Lillard could ultimately be tabbed the hero for the Trail Blazers, Portland had a number of players in double-figures and got a big game from guard CJ McCollum. McCollum racked up a team-high 35 points on 14 of 25 shooting from the floor along with eight assists.

https://twitter.com/trailblazers/status/1375300225292730370

In addition to McCollum’s 30-point performance, the Trail Blazers also got strong performances from Lillard and center Enes Kanter. The two combined for 40 points to go along with McCollum’s 35.

As a team, Portland shot nearly 48 % from the floor and managed to knock down 20 three-pointers.

While Miami did fall short in the final seconds, it was still a strong performance despite not having some key players in the lineup Thursday night.

Heat Come Up Short

Come game time, Miami only had nine athletes available to play against the Trail Blazers. This was mostly due to the fact that the Heat were dealing with multiple issues such as trade moves, players battling illnesses and coronavirus problems.

Miami was without forward Jimmy Butler (illness) and guard Goran Dragic (back). Furthermore, forward Udonis Haslem and forward/guard KZ Okpala were not available due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols.

But despite all of this, the Heat still managed to almost pull out the victory Thursday night. This was thanks in large part to solid showings from center Bam Adebayo and point guard Tyler Hero.

The two teammates combined for 58 of Miami’s 125 points along 15 assists and 13 rebounds.

https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1375243398572040192

Also contributing to the scoring efforts for the Heat was guard Kendrick Nunn, who finished with 22 points on 9 of 13 shooting from the field. In total, Miami shot 56 % from the floor and racked up 16 three-pointers as a team.

Looking Ahead

Both squads will be back in action tonight. The Heat will look to end their five-game skid when they travel to Charlotte to take on the Hornets at 8 p.m. Meanwhile, Portland is staying in Florida and travels to Orlando to take on the Magic at 8 p.m.