Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded a triple-double with 31 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists Friday night to help the Miami Heat cruise to a 145-125 victory over the visiting Indiana Pacers in the teams’ NBA Cup opener.
Bam Adebayo added 27 points and nine rebounds, while Klay Thompson scored 25 points on seven 3-pointers in Miami’s first home win. Pelle Larsson had 18 points off the bench, Davion Mitchell tallied 15 points and 11 assists, and Andrew Wiggins scored 12 for the Heat, who won their second straight after dropping their first four games of the season.
Quenton Jackson led Indiana with 24 points off the bench, followed by Andrew Nembhard’s 22 points and nine assists and reserve Jarace Walker’s 14 points. Pascal Siakam and Jay Huff each had 13 points, and Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 10 for Indiana, which lost its third straight.
Holding a seven-point halftime lead, Miami opened the third quarter on a 10-0 run and went ahead 78-61 on Thompson’s third 3-pointer.
Oubre briefly stopped the bleeding with a layup, but Thompson answered with consecutive 3-pointers to give Miami a 21-point lead with 6:34 left in the third.
Thompson made two more 3-pointers in the quarter before Bobby Portis Jr. connected from beyond the arc to give the Heat a 103-82 advantage.
The Pacers scored the quarter’s final six points to pull within 15 entering the fourth. Miami outscored Indiana 42-37 in the final quarter to seal the win.
Miami made 12 of its first 15 field-goal attempts and took a 27-23 lead on Antetokounmpo’s three-point play with 5:29 left in the opening quarter.
Huff, Nembhard and Larry Nance Jr. each drilled a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter to give the Pacers a 42-36 edge entering the second.
Jackson hit a 3-pointer to push Indiana’s lead to eight with 7:21 remaining in the first half.
Miami finished the half on a 22-7 run and grabbed a 68-61 lead at the break. Antetokounmpo and Nembhard each scored 17 points in the first half.
–Field Level Media
