Heat cruise to 122-105 win vs Warriors to remain unbeaten at home

The Miami Heat hit five of their first seven shots to race out to a 12-2 lead in the first three minutes of the game and never looked back to remain perfect at home with a 122-105 win versus the Golden State Warriors on Friday night.

As is customary this season so far at the AmericanAirlines Arena, the Heat started the game red-hot from the floor to build a sizable lead while maintaining their defensive intensity enough in the second half to withstand any runs from the opponent. Against the NBA’s worst team, the Heat were able to get great looks at the basket right from the start while Kendrick Nunn, who played in the Warriors system last season, led the charge early as he penetrated and finished at the rim with ease.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr called timeouts after the Heat built their 12-2 lead and again at 21-6 but there was little they could do to turn the game around as the home team would go on to build a 20-point lead by the end of the first quarter and score 71 points in the first half. Golden State would chip away at the deficit starting in the second quarter, in which they scored 37 points, and they would eventually get it down to six points in the third quarter. The Heat would respond with a 27-8 run of their own to restore order in the game and boost their lead again.

Six players finished with double-digits in scoring, with Goran Dragic leading the team with 20 points off the bench as well as four assists and five rebounds. Tyler Herro had 19 points and five rebounds, Duncan Robinson hit five of seven 3-pointers to finish with 17 points, and Jimmy Butler shook off a poor shooting night by knocking down 10 out of 12 free throws for 16 points along with five rebounds, six assists and two steals.

Miami improved to 8-0 at home, matching their best start in franchise history, and will next visit the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday at 3:00pm.