Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo pinpoint major factors that doomed Heat in loss to 76ers

Butler would finish with 20 points, five assists, and four rebounds in the game as he also mentioned they were costly with the ball as they had five turnovers in the fourth quarter. Plus, Heat star Terry Rozier would mention it was devastating how it ended as he led the team once again with 22 points. There’s no doubt that the loss stings as they were strides made offensively during their massive runs throughout the contest.

Adebayo talks what led to loss to the Sixers including star performances

Adebayo started slow in the first half on both ends of the floor as he was tasked in guarding a returning Joel Embiid who just made his return after missing 29 straight games and shot two for nine from the field. The Heat’s star big-man finished with 14 points (6-15 FG) and 11 rebounds and said after the game that the loss came down to the 76ers taking Miami “out of our routine offense” and their star players “making tough shots.”

“They got us out of our routine offense. Also, we were careless with the ball and wasn’t detailed at the end of the day,” Adebayo said. “That’s guys making tough shots, they are going to have nights like that. For us, it’s being consistent, standing true to who we are and live with the result.”

Embiid scored 29 points in his second game back from injury, but it was star Tyrese Maxey who was electric as he scored 37 points, recorded 11 assists, and collected nine rebounds. Those two were the difference makers when Miami went radio silent in the final eight minutes and change of the game.

Spoelstra says that the hectic type of game was to be expected

Continuing on the pressure from the Heat’s last game in the win against the New York Knicks, Thursday night felt like a playoff atmosphere as both teams are fighting for a better spot in the postseason. Because of that, Spoelstra says that the game was expected to go “back and forth” like it did.

“We’re right next to each other in the standings. So that’s what games are going to be like back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. We’re gonna go on a run, they’ll go on a run, just keep on going that way, and they made the final run and that’s what’s disappointing about this,” Spoelstra said. “In the last three minutes they’ve made more of the plays, particularly defensively, they forced some turnovers, jammed us up, either jump balls, turnovers or just we’re not getting clean looks. And we are not able to do the same for them. It was tough to say because there wasn’t a ton of half-court possessions that they had, they had some easy ones in the open court, and they just they finished it out.”

“We had opportunities,” Spoelstra continued. “I felt like when we got up eight we had opportunities to get to 10 or 12 and a couple fast breaks and led the turnovers but that’s going to happen. We couldn’t generate enough good looks in our half court offense down the stretch. That was a pretty tough defensive game both ways all the way through.”

There’s no time to rest for Miami as they start a three-game road trip Friday when they take on the Houston Rockets. The Heat are currently 42-34 which puts them seventh in the tightly packed Eastern Conference.