Jimmy Butler led the Miami Heat to a 123-118 overtime victory against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, scoring a game-high 33 points along with nine rebounds and six assists.
Dallas’ Kyrie Irving tallied 27 points and six assists, supported by P.J. Washington with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Naji Marshall added 20 points, including 19 in the second half, while Dereck Lively II contributed a double-double with 14 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks. Klay Thompson rebounded from a rough performance in the previous game to score 15 points for Dallas. However, the Mavericks were without Luka Doncic, sidelined due to a wrist injury.
The Heat had strong contributions from Bam Adebayo (19 points, 11 rebounds) and Tyler Herro (18 points, 10 boards). Adebayo’s clutch 3-pointer in overtime put Miami ahead for good at 120-118, as Dallas failed to score on its final seven attempts.
Miami shot 34.1% (14-of-41) from beyond the arc compared to Dallas’ 25% (10-of-40), with the Mavericks shooting 41.9% overall.
In regulation, Irving’s late 3-pointer gave Dallas its first lead since the first quarter at 106-103. Despite Irving missing a crucial free throw with 8.2 seconds left, Butler forced overtime with a dunk set up by Duncan Robinson. Spencer Dinwiddie’s potential game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer rattled out.
Dinwiddie finished with just seven points on 1-of-12 shooting, missing all nine of his 3-point attempts.
Miami ended the first quarter on a 9-0 run to lead 33-28 and maintained a narrow advantage throughout. Despite struggling offensively in the second quarter, shooting only 28.6%, the Heat held a 56-51 halftime lead. Even with tied second (23-23) and third quarters (33-33), Miami entered the fourth up 89-84, ultimately securing the win in a tightly contested battle.
