The Miami Heat eked out a road win at Minnesota on Sunday to snap a three-game losing streak and provide an emotional boost as they head into their NBA Cup opener against the host Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.
The game is an NBA Cup group-play opener for both teams. The Heat and Pistons are part of the tournament’s East Group B, which also includes the Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors.
Nikola Jovic’s three-point play with 7.8 seconds left proved to be the difference in a 95-94 triumph over the Timberwolves. Miami lost to Sacramento, Phoenix and Denver prior to the one-point thriller.
The Heat trailed 88-80 with less than five minutes remaining.
“That was a signature win for us,” Heat center Bam Adebayo said.
After a timeout, Duncan Robinson inbounded the ball to Jovic, who was moving off a back screen.
“It is extremely difficult to generate an open shot on a side out of bounds, particularly against a team that is well coached, they have great length,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “So we were just fortunate. Duncan made a great pass, Niko made a great cut.”
Tyler Herro has carried the offense lately, leading the team in scoring in the last four games by averaging 26.3 points. The biggest development Sunday was the defensive effort. Minnesota’s point total was the lowest allowed by Miami this season.
“This is the hardest we’ve played in any of the regular-season games this season,” Spoelstra said. “It’s the message we tell our team all the time, that does not guarantee you anything. It doesn’t. But you put yourself out there as a competitor, you give yourself the best collective chance to win in a tough building.
“This is a tough team, an experienced team and it requires everybody on the roster playing as hard as they can, leaving it all out there and then you obviously have to make plays, which we did at the end.”
Miami played without Jimmy Butler, who sprained his right ankle against the Nuggets. There is a good chance he will sit out Tuesday as well.
The Pistons’ last three games haven’t been decided until the closing seconds. They lost to the Houston Rockets 101-99 on Sunday.
Tobias Harris had a chance to tie the game on two free throws with one second remaining. He missed the first, forcing him to intentionally miss the second in a futile attempt for a tip-in off a rebound.
“Obviously that’s tough, but we trust Tobias to knock his free throws down,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He just missed it.”
Detroit saw Houston grab 17 offensive rebounds, including some key putbacks in the late going.
“I thought our guys did a great job in the scrap; there were times when they beat us to the ball, which is what they’ve done and what’s helped them win basketball games,” Bickerstaff said. “I thought our guys fought the fight. We gave ourselves an opportunity, but (seven) offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter; it’s just too tough to overcome.”
Cade Cunningham’s three-game triple-double streak ended, though he came close to extending it. He finished with 26 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
The Pistons got some good news on Monday. Second-year forward Ausar Thompson has been cleared to play after dealing with blood clot issues. However, he may have trouble cracking the rotation Bickerstaff has used through the first 11 games.