Heat
Heat's Bench Blitzes Raptors Behind a Dominant First Quarter
The Heat opened with a 41-23 first quarter and never let up, beating the Raptors 129-105 in a preseason game at Videotron Centre in Quebec City. Miami's reserves outscored Toronto's bench 95-57 and the Heat shot 48.8% from the field against 39.4% for the Raptors. Both teams sit at 0-0, so the result carries no standings weight, just early rotation reads.
By the Hoops Nightly Desk · updated 19 d ago01The story of the nightThe first quarter decided itMiami scored 41 points in the opening frame to Toronto's 23, an 18-point cushion before the game was ten minutes old.
Miami scored 41 points in the opening frame to Toronto's 23, an 18-point cushion before the game was ten minutes old. The Raptors clawed back with a 32-19 second quarter, but the deficit only shrank to 76-55 at the half. The Heat's biggest lead reached 24 points, while Toronto's largest lead all game was 2. Both teams had three lead changes, all of them bunched early before Miami pulled away for good. A quiet 19-point Miami third quarter let Toronto trim the gap to 95-80, but a 34-point Heat fourth closed it out at 129-105.
02Bench players led both sidesTim Hardaway Jr.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 14 points on a perfect 4/4 from the field, including 3/3 from three, in just 11.2 minutes off Miami's bench. Pelle Larsson added 13 on 3/3 shooting and 7/7 from the line. Andrew Wiggins hit four of six 3-pointers for 12 points, and Nikola Jovic filled the stat sheet with 11 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. For Toronto, RJ Barrett and bench scorer Tyreke Key each had 15 points, with Key hitting 4/7 from deep. Jakob Poeltl was efficient with 9 points on 3/3 shooting plus 2 steals and a block.
03Where it was decidedMiami's bench outscored Toronto's reserves 95-57, the single biggest gap in the box score.
Miami's bench outscored Toronto's reserves 95-57, the single biggest gap in the box score. The Heat also shot better from the field (48.8% to 39.4%) and from three (14/40 to 12/41), and went 31/36 at the line compared to Toronto's 19/30. Toronto actually won the paint battle 50-48 and matched Miami in fast-break points, 28-27, while also forcing more turnovers into steals, 17-9. But Miami turned 25 turnovers of its own into only a minor cost, scoring 17 points off Toronto's 19 turnovers to Toronto's 15 off Miami's 25.
04What it meansBoth teams are 0-0 in the preseason, so the result has no bearing on the standings.
Both teams are 0-0 in the preseason, so the result has no bearing on the standings. For Miami, the bench production from Hardaway Jr., Larsson and Jovic offers an early look at depth beyond the regulars like Bam Adebayo, who had a quiet 10 points on 2/7 shooting. For Toronto, Scottie Barnes finished with 11 points but 3 turnovers and a team-worst -16 plus-minus in only 12.2 minutes, while Chucky Hepburn's 11 points and 4 steals off the bench stood out as a positive in a lopsided loss.
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