NBA: Heat hang on to beat Jazz; Mavericks fend off Celtics with Doncic's trey

Miami Heat's Kyle Lowry (right) is defended by Utah Jazz's Mike Conley at the FTX Arena on Nov 6, 2021 in Miami, Florida. PHOTO: AFP

MIAMI (Reuters) - Tyler Herro had 29 points and Jimmy Butler added 27 as the host Miami Heat used a multi-dimensional offensive attack to build a big lead before holding on to defeat the Utah Jazz 118-115 on Saturday night (Nov 6).

Kyle Lowry scored 20 as part of a triple-double for the Heat.

In a battle of teams that had combined for just three losses entering the game, the Heat used 60.3 percent shooting overall and 52.4 percent accuracy on three-pointers to win for the sixth time in their last seven games.

Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with 37 points for the Jazz, who had a three-game winning streak come to an end.

Over in Dallas, Luka Doncic made the game-winning three-pointer as time expired and had a game-high 33 points to help the Mavericks hold off visiting Boston 107-104.

Doncic dribbled the length of the court before heaving up a fadeaway trey from the wing in triple coverage to win it.

Kristaps Porzingis added 21 points and seven rebounds in his return after missing the last five games with lower back tightness. Jayson Tatum had 32 points and 11 rebounds to pace the Celtics.

Devin Booker led all scorers with 38 points, and a 35-19 fourth quarter powered Phoenix to a come-from-behind 121-117 victory over visiting Atlanta.

The Suns were outscored 40-27 in the third quarter and trailed by as many as 12 points in the fourth quarter, but a game-ending 15-4 run completed the Phoenix rally.

The Hawks' John Collins shot 9-of-12 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. He posted a double-double of 26 points and 10 rebounds.

In Portland, Damian Lillard bounced back from one of the worst performances of his National Basketball Association career to score 25 points and lead Portland past visiting Los Angeles 105-90

The Lakers continued to be without four-time MVP LeBron James, who missed his second straight game with an abdominal strain. Anthony Davis started against Portland, but the eight-time All-Star centre played just seven minutes before departing because of a stomach illness.

The team said it was not Covid-19 related. Davis was also dealing with a sprained right thumb and was questionable to play at all. The Lakers did not have a starter score in double figures.

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (right) drives to the basket on Indiana Pacers guard Caris LeVert during the first quarter of the game at Moda Center. PHOTO: REUTERS

Nikola Jokic had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Aaron Gordon hit back-to-back three-pointers in the final two minutes as Denver escaped with a 95-94 win over visiting Houston.

Daniel Theis scored 18 points and hit a three-pointer with 2:46 left to give the Rockets a 94-89 lead. Gordon responded with six straight points before Jokic sealed the victory with a block of Jae'Sean Tate's layup at the buzzer.

Will Barton tallied 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists for Denver, which won its second straight game despite shooting 9 of 40 (22.5 percent) from 3-point range. Theis returned after missing two games with a sore right big toe and was 7-of-11 shooting in 32 minutes for Houston, which has lost seven in a row and eight of its first nine games.

In Chicago, Joel Embiid had 30 points and 15 rebounds to lift visitors Philadelphia past the Bulls, 114-105.

Furkan Korkmaz tied his career high with seven three-pointers and added 25 points while Shake Milton had 13 for the short-handed Sixers, who won their sixth in a row and gave head coach Doc Rivers his 1,000th career victory.

Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 32 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points. Derrick Jones Jr. contributed 12 points and Nikola Vucevic had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

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