Miami Loses Its Heat To 76ers

For the Miami Heat, the possibility of having to compete in the NBA play in-tournament may become a reality.

Miami lost 109-105 Thursday to the visiting Philadelphia 76ers. Although a loss, the Heat (42-34) remain ahead of the 76ers (42-35) in the Eastern Conference, ranking seventh, holding a 0.5 game advantage over its opponent.

An Even Matchup

Injuries

Both teams were missing key players in Thursday’s game.

For Miami, shooting guard Tyler Herro extended his absence streak to 20 games, as he remained sidelined due to a right foot injury. Missing for the Sixers was power forward Tobias Harris, who was ruled out due to a bruised knee.

https://twitter.com/BasketballOnX/status/1776094399266750704

Exchanging leads

Things started off rough for Miami.

After missing Tuesday’s game vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder, Sixers’ point guard Tyrese Maxey put up eight of Philly’s first 10 points to put Miami down by 10. The Heat trailed the 76ers for most of the first half, until Haywood Highsmith put up two, to tie the game 43-43 with 6:47 left in the second quarter.

Haywood is still hoopin' ♨️

He's got a team-high 10 points on 4/5 FGM pic.twitter.com/sf3rDB1Xw5

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) April 5, 2024

The Heat followed with their first lead when Caleb Martin made a 3-pointer, putting Miami up 46-43. The lead did not last, as the Sixers responded with a 20-1 run to go into halftime leading 63-55.

In the second half, Sixers Kyle Lowry and NBA MVP Joel Embiid kept Miami at bay, stretching the lead to as far as 10 points (81-71).

The Heat quickly reacted with Terry Rozier putting up 3-point running jump shot. Jimmy Butler joined the action, with a layup followed by an And-one dunk to put Miami up one going into the fourth quarter.

https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1776056657572741157?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1776056657572741157%7Ctwgr%5E545554e2b61a3aac718a584ecc01d8706888dee9%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhothothoops.com%2F2024%2F04%2F04%2Fheat-sixers-embiid-butler-bam-rozier-maxey%2F

The Heat struggled in the fourth quarter. Miami managed to build a 102-94 lead, but was unable to control the advantage.

Philadelphia closed the game on a 15-3 run to secure the four-point win.

Up Next

The Heat have six games remaining in their regular season with an opportunity to gain a top-six seed and avoid the play-in tournament. The Heat trail just 0.5 games behind the Indiana Pacers (43-34) in the conference.

Miami will travel to Houston to face the Rockets for the second time this season starting at 8 p.m. Friday. The Heat beat the Rockets 120-113 on Jan. 9 when Herro led Miami with 28 points.