Miami Heat (42-39) beat Washington Wizards (17-64) 140-117 on the road on Friday, April 10. The final margin was 23 points.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Heat struck first, taking the opening quarter 34-23 and a 11-point lead after one. The Heat kept the pressure on with a 38-29 second quarter, carrying a 20-point lead into halftime.
The teams matched each other with 33 points apiece in the third quarter, so the Heat remained ahead by 20 entering the fourth. The Heat took the fourth 35-32; the Heat finished the job for a 140-117 regulation win.
Why it was lopsided
The Heat got more from their shots, finishing at 72% effective field-goal shooting compared with 57.6% for the Wizards. The Heat made 26.8 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 12 for the Wizards. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Wizards did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 12.4 against 17.6. The Heat made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 104 possessions per team, the Heat produced 134.9 points per 100 possessions to 112.7 for the Wizards.
Who stood out
Bilal Coulibaly was the game's biggest individual force for WAS: 25 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast on 9-16 shooting. His Game Score of 24.3 led everyone. His team was +3 with him on the floor.
Simone Fontecchio led the Heat with 24 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast on 8-10 shooting, good for a 22.4 Game Score.
Bam Adebayo (20 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast) recorded a double-double.
What it means
The result fit the pre-game Win Meter, which gave the Heat about a 75% chance.
Across the last 7 meetings in our records, Miami Heat lead 6-1.
The Heat are now 42-39, and the Wizards are 17-64. The Heat last five before this game: W-L-W-L-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.