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On the night the Miami Heat celebrate the unveiling of Dwyane Wade statue the day before, they beat the Detroit Pistons Monday night, 106-98, to make it two straight wins. It marks the team's first win of the season on the Heat's new-named Pat Riley court at the Kaseya Center.
Jimmy Butler led the team with 23 points as Terry Rozier was behind him with 20, and Tyler Herro wasn't far too far with 19 points.
Here are three takeaways from the Heat's win over the Pistons:
Heat duo of Tyler Herro, Terry Rozier with a great first half
One of the biggest narratives from last season when the Heat traded for Rozier before the trade deadline was how he would play in the starting lineup with fellow guard in Tyler Herro. Fans were wondering if one guard would fall behind in the shadows as both have explosive offensive talent, but as time went on, it's clear they have got comfortable together and Monday night displayed it early.
Each would score 14 points, making five shots each, both with efficient play as Herro was five for eight and Rozier was five for nine from the field in the first half. The chemistry has no doubt been flowing for the star guards since the season has started, especially if either Butler or Adebayo start the game off slow.
Speaking of Butler and Adebayo, they would have 12 and eight points respectively as the latter would not make or even attempt his first shot from the field until midway of the second period. At any rate, the second quarter was huge for Miami as they made 61.9 percent of of their shots from the field and five of 10 from three-point range to open up a lead of 13 at its largest while making Detroit commit six turnovers leading to 12 Heat points.
It was a much needed outing in the second as in the first period, it was a close game with the Pistons having the slight advantage as they started off strong, led by Cade Cunningham who had 13 in the opening frame, 18 in the first half.
Heat dwindle in the third period leading to close second half
It was a rough start to the second half for the Heat as they had their worst offensive frame up until that point with 14 points compared to the Pistons who had 26. Talking about the last takeaway where Herro and Rozier blew up in the first half, they were radio silent in the third quarter, missing some good looks that could have helped Miami keep up their lead.
Miami's double-digit lead dwindled down to Detroit taking back the lead as they were up one going into the fourth period as the home team shot 23.8 percent in the frame and two of 12 from deep. They needed some momentum badly in the final period which they got just what the doctor ordered.
They started the final period on a 9-0 run started by Jimmy Butler playing to his strengths leading to Detroit making some sloppy mistakes with solid Heat defense. It would become a back and forth boxing match as Herro and Rozier started to come alive a little more with around five minutes left in the game.
They would end up closing it out in what was an ugly game, but Miami showed their resiliency, though some fans will question if that should of been the case with Detroit.
Important Eastern Conference game ahead for Heat Wednesday
With a much needed win to get their first victory on their home floor, they now prepare for a tough matchup against the New York Knicks. They have a new look to their roster this season, adding such stars as Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges while still having their main offensive engine in Jalen Brunson.
The Heat always look to challenge the East as the rest of the conference has got better, but still, Miami has their hands full Wednesday. It could be another taste of what's to come in a packed Eastern Conference after losing to the Orlando Magic in the first game of the season. Biggest takeaway here is that they looked inconsistent at best against the Pistons who had one of the worst records last season as they can't do the same against a strong Knicks squad.
