MIAMI — Maybe this was rock bottom for the Clippers? Things can’t get much worse.
Norman Powell scored 30 points against his former team, Bam Adebayo had 27 points and a season-high 14 rebounds in 32 minutes and the Miami Heat downed the reeling Clippers, 140-123, on Monday night, handing them their 14th loss in the past 16 games.
Tyler Herro and Andrew Wiggins each scored 22 for the Heat, who trailed by two early in the second quarter before going on a 30-2 run. Miami also hit 24 3-pointers, tying a franchise record done on two previous occasions.
Miami went on a 12-0 run in the first 2:02 of the third quarter, all on 3-pointers, two of them by Adebayo. That turned a 20-point halftime lead into a 32-point edge and the outcome was never in serious doubt again.
Kawhi Leonard scored 36 and Ivica Zubac finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Clippers, who started the season 3-2 but are now 5-16 – the worst 21-game start for the franchise since a 4-17 beginning to the 2010-11 season.
James Harden scored 11 points for the Clippers in 20 minutes, and didn’t play in the final 22:34. The Clippers, playing the first game of a five-game trip, were outscored by 39 points when the former league MVP was on the court.
Powell, who the Clippers sent to Miami as part of a three-team deal that included Utah sending forward John Collins to L.A., played a leading role in extending his former team’s struggles.
Powell, who shot 12 for 18 from the field (6 for 10 from 3-point range), had 11 points during the 30-2 spurt. Miami shot 9 for 12 from the field as part of that avalanche, while the Clippers missed all 11 of their shots. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Powell finished the run.
The Clippers made things a bit interesting in the fourth, outscoring Miami 41-26 with Leonard scoring 19 points in the quarter and getting his team within 12 with two minutes left. But Miami (14-7) scored the next nine points – a three-point play by Herro, then 3-pointers from Powell and Wiggins to put the game away.
Miami shot 14 for 21 from 3-point range in the first half, while the Clippers were 3 for 15 from behind the arc. The Heat wound up 24 for 46 (52.2%) from long range, while the Clippers finished 9 for 29 (31%).
Davion Mitchell scored 16 points, going 4 for 4 from 3-point range, and dished out 12 assists for Miami, which won for the seventh time in eight games.
It was the fifth time Miami has reached the 140-point mark this season, after getting there a total of eight times in the franchise’s first 37 seasons.
UP NEXT
The Clippers continue their trip in Atlanta on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. PT.