76ers rally past Heat, pull closer to Miami in standings. Takeaways and details

Five takeaways from the Heat’s 109-105 loss against the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night at Kaseya Center:

▪ The Heat rode a dynamic stretch from Jimmy Butler and four reserves to pull ahead in the fourth but then unraveled offensively late, going nearly six minutes without a point.

The Heat hit just one basket in the final 8:18 of the game. That’s how you lose an eight-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.

Miami shot just 6 for 22 and committed five turnovers in that fateful fourth.

Terry Rozier lamented the “empty possessions on offense. It definitely cost us. It’s devastating for us to come up short.”

The game featured runs of 25-6 and 17-0 for the Heat and 17-2, 20-1 and 13-0 for Philadelphia.

Unfortunately for Miami, Philadelphia had the last meaningful run of the night, that 13-0 spurt that erased an eight-point Heat lead and put the 76ers ahead 107-102 with less than a minute remaining.

The Heat led 102-94 after Jimmy Butler hit two free throws with 6:28 left. The Heat then gave up that 13-0 spurt and didn’t score again until Rozier’s three-pointer with 45 seconds left.

After Tyrese Maxey missed a jumper, Jimmy Butler’s three rimmed out with 5.9 seconds left; “Jimmy’s look was clean,” Erik Spoelstra said.

Haywood Highsmith rebounded the miss but lost the ball to Maxey, who hit two free throws to seal it with one-tenth of a second left.

Some perspective on this offensive collapse:

After Jaime Jaquez Jr. hit a free throw to put Miami ahead 100-93 with 7:33 left, the Heat scored just two points over the next seven minutes (on two Butler free throws) before Rozier’s three late.

Miami closed at 41.5 percent from the field and 30.2 percent on threes (13 for 43). And the Heat’s 17 turnovers led to 23 Philadelphia points.

Making matters worse, Rozier was limping late in the game.

“He banged knees,” Spoelstra said. “We will have to see how he feels when we get on to Houston [for a Friday night game]. He said he feels fine. We don’t want to take anyone at their word... He’s tough. Hit that big three down the stretch.”

Rozier said of his knee: “I’m good. I feel better now.”

So what happened in the fourth?

“We couldn’t hit shots when we needed to,” Butler said. “Some costly turnovers, too. We were stagnant all game, got in a hole because of it.”

The Heat erased all of an early 17-2 deficit by midway through the second quarter, fell behind by 16 again, but strung together a 24-6 run late in the third and early in the fourth to surge ahead 95-87 before the 76ers rallied and the Heat fell apart.

Butler scored nine points late in the third and early in the fourth, finishing with 20 points but on 7 for 17 shooting.

A lineup featuring Butler, Jaquez Jr., Caleb Martin, Highsmith and Kevin Love did excellent work during maniacal rallies in the second quarter and again late in the third and early in the fourth. Spoelstra stuck mostly with that group until Adebayo re-entered with under four minutes left.

Love had 11 points, 16 rebounds and four assists in 18 minutes, fueling the second-half comeback. Miami outscored Philadelphia by 25 when Love was in the game.

Highsmith scored all 12 of his points in the second quarter, chipped in nine boards and played his usual pesky defense.

Martin and Jaquez gave the Heat energy and defense and a couple of timely baskets.

Miami was a plus 25 in Jaquez’s 20 minutes on the floor.

Adebayo was totally out of sync early, opening 1 for 8 and going to the half with five points and two turnovers. He finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 6 for 15 from the field.

Butler, for a while, seemed in jeopardy of a sixth consecutive game without getting to 20 points.

Butler surprisingly had difficulty generating offense early when defended by Kyle Lowry, despite a seven-inch height advantage. Butler scored only nine on 3 for 6 first half shooting.

But he scored Miami’s final five points of the third quarter, then two big baskets early in the fourth before missing a three and committing a turnover in the final two minutes.

Butler entered Thursday having shot 20 for 45 from the field in his past five games, with point totals of 17, 15, 8, 17 and 17.

▪ Maxey, controlling the first half with his speed and shooting, gave the Heat a painful reminder of its biggest personnel mistake of the decade. And Joel Embiid - back from a knee injury - reminded everyone that he’s as dominant as any player in the game before tiring in his second game back after a long layoff.

Embiid - who missed 29 games in a row with a knee injury before returning Tuesday against Oklahoma City - scored 29 but shot 3 for 12 after an 8 for 13 start.

Maxey, who scored 37, spearheaded a 17-2 run to start the game and another 9-0 run later in the quarter. He scored 15 in the first quarter and 24 in the first half, attacking the Heat’s gaps and beating Miami off the dribble with his lightning quickness.

Then, after the Heat rallied from 16 down to take a 46-43 lead, Maxey darted past Heat defenders, scoring six points in an 11-1 76ers run that ultimately became a 20-1 run.

Maxey went to the half with 24 points, seven rebounds and five assists on 10 for 15 shooting. When it was over, the 2024 All Star had scored 30 points against Miami for the third time in four games this season. He finished 15 for 26 from the field, with 11 assists and 9 rebounds.

The Heat could have selected Maxey 20th overall in the 2020 NBA Draft but opted instead for Precious Achiuwa, who was dealt to Toronto a year later (with Goran Dragic) in a sign and trade for Lowry. Philadelphia then took Maxey at 21.

In January, Lowry was dealt with a first-round pick to Charlotte for Rozier.

So instead of simply drafting Maxey, Miami essentially used two first-round picks for 2 ½ years of Lowry and the two-plus years remaining on Rozier’s contract.

▪ The Heat squandered a chance to remain sixth in the East and further distance itself from No. 8 Philadelphia.

Instead of going up 2 ½ games on the 76ers and clinching the tiebreaker, No. 7 Miami (42-34) instead stands just a half game ahead of No. 8 Philadelphia (42-35). Miami also fell one half game behind No. 6 Indiana (43-34); the Heat had entered the night in the sixth spot.

If the teams finish in their current spots, then the 76ers would play at Miami in a play-in game on April 16, with the winner claiming the seventh seed and the loser playing the winner of the Hawks-Bulls play-in game for the right to play top-seeded Boston in the first round.

And it’s also possible that Philadelphia could jump the Heat for seventh because the 76ers have the easier schedule. If the 76ers are seventh and Heat eighth, then Philadelphia would play host to the 7-8 play-in game with Miami.

The Heat closes with road games at Houston on Friday, at Indiana on Sunday, at Atlanta on Tuesday and then home to Dallas, before two home games against Toronto.

Philadelphia has an easier remaining schedule: at Memphis, at San Antonio, Detroit, Orlando and Brooklyn.

The Heat finished 2-2 against the 76ers and is 1-1 against the Pacers entering their series finale on Sunday.

If teams from different divisions split a season series – as the Heat and 76ers did - then the tiebreaker would go to the team that wins its division. At the moment, neither team is leading its division. The next tiebreaker would be conference record, and the Heat has a 1 ½ game edge there.

Cumulative head-to-head record would determine a three-team tiebreaker and that’s unresolved among the Heat, 76ers and Pacers.

“There’s no time for emotions,” Adebayo said after Thursday’s game. “We’ve got a game tomorrow.”

▪ Haywood Highsmith and Rozier continued their best three-point shooting stretches in their time with the Heat.

Highsmith - who entered shooting 40.6 percent on threes - hit his first two threes on Thursday, making him 18 for his last 25.

His 12 points in the second quarter sparked a furious Heat rally.

Rozier ended the first half with a 28-foot three and he hit 6 of his 13 threes on a 22 point night. He entered having made 19 of his last 32 threes.

Rozier said afterward that his knee is fine, even though he was limping.

Overall, there wasn’t nearly enough offensively, with Duncan Robinson closing 1 for 4 in 20 minutes.

“In the last 3 1/2 minutes, they made more of the plays, particularly defensively,” Spoelstra said. “They forced some turnovers, either jump balls or turnovers. We couldn’t generate enough good looks in our halfcourt offense down the stretch. We will lick our wounds, get onto Houston and figure this out.”

▪ In his first game in Miami since being traded, Lowry received an ovation. Then he helped spark the 76ers with some timely baskets and some snug defense on his close friend Butler.

A frequent target of Heat fans during his time here, he instead received applause when introduced with the other 76ers starters.

Lowry on Thursday scored eight, with six rebounds and five assists.

“I have admiration for these coaches, the players, the ownership group, Pat (Riley), Andy Elisburg, like I have admiration and love for those guys,” Lowry said told Sixers Wire.

“One of my closest friends in the world is Jimmy Butler, and I love him and I will love him past basketball, beyond basketball. Kevin Love, I’ve created relationships that are lifelong relationships in a place that I love…. I cheer for them except for when I’m playing against them.”

Lowry, who was traded to Charlotte with a first-round pick for Rozier, never played a game for the Hornets.

After a buyout, he signed with the 76ers and has started 17 of his 20 appearances. His scoring average (8.5) and minutes per game (29) and shooting percentage (43.7) are slightly above his Heat averages this season.