Miami’s big runs stop Wizards
Bam Adebayo scored 21 points and Jimmy Butler had 19 as the Eastern Conference-leading Heat cruised to a 121-100 win over the Wizards on Monday night in Washington, D.C.
Miami (35-20) won its third straight and improved to 3-2 on a six-game trip.
Corey Kispert equaled his personal high with 20 points for the Wizards (24-29), who were without leading scorer Bradley Beal and lost for the ninth time in 11 games. They are a season-low five games under .500 after opening 10-3.
The Heat went on a 10-0 run to open the third, then a 15-0 spurt a bit later.
The difference was 3pointers. The Heat shot 18for-32 (56.3%) from long range. The Wizards went 7-for-31 (22.6%).
Suns 127, Bulls 124: Devin Booker poured in 38 points as visiting Phoenix (43-10) won for the 13th time in 14 games. Chris Paul added 19 points and 11 assists as the Suns did not trail after the first 11⁄2 minutes. The Suns led 125-108 before the Bulls finished on a 16-2 run. JaVale McGee added 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench. The Bulls (33-21), who lost for the third time in four games, got 38 points from DeMar DeRozan and 32 from Zach LaVine.
Raptors 116, Hornets 101: Pascal Siakam had 24 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and Toronto recorded its sixth straight win. Gary Trent Jr. scored 24 points, and Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby each had 20 points for the Raptors, who began a stretch of eight of nine games on the road with a convincing win. Scottie Barnes added 15 points as the Raptors’ starters accounted for all but 13 points.
Miles Bridges scored 25 points to lead the Hornets, who lost their fifth straight game. Charlotte struggled through another poor offensive performance, shooting 41.1% from the field and 22.5% from 3-point range. All-Star replacements: Charlotte guard LaMelo Ball and San Antonio guard Dejounte Murray were named to the All-Star Game as injury replacements for Brooklyn forward Kevin Durant and Warriors forward Draymond Green. The league also said that Boston forward Jayson Tatum, who was selected as a reserve, will replace Durant as a starter.
The 71st NBA All-Star Game is Feb. 20 in Cleveland.