Heat Has Slight Edge Over Mavericks In Pivotal Encounter In Miami

The Miami Heat will try to snap their three-game losing streak against the Mavericks.
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KEY POINTS

The Mavericks need a win to keep their NBA playoff hopes alive
The Heat needs better games from Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler to pull off a win
The Miami Heat is looking to check its three-game slide against the Mavs

The beleaguered Dallas Mavericks will try to keep their play-in tournament hopes alive when they visit the Miami Heat at Florida’s Miami-Dade Arena Saturday.

Both teams are coming off losses and will try to get back on the winning track. The Miami Heat was picked as -1 favorites to prevail over the Mavericks during Saturday’s matchup, according to USA Today. The moneyline for this game is -115 for Miami and -105 for Dallas.

A win is more essential for the Mavericks, which are currently at the 11th spot in the Western Conference standings with a 37-40 record.

A win would allow them to tie 10th-placer Oklahoma City Thunder, which has a 38-40 win-loss card as of this writing.

In their last assignment, the Mavs dropped a 108-116 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday.

Luka Doncic led the way with 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Kyrie Irving was not far behind with 23 points, six rebounds and five assists.

However, their efforts were not enough to fend off Joel Embiid and James Harden of the Sixers.

“We just can’t be a championship game overnight,” Irving said after the game, as quoted by ESPN. “I’ve wrapped my head around it. I’m at peace with it.”

Securing a victory won’t come easy for the Mavericks as they face a team that is coming off three straight losses.

In their last game, the Heat bowed to the New York Knicks, 92-101, Wednesday, even with Julius Randle forced out after injuring his ankle.

“None of us feel good about it. This is where we are. You are what your record is. You are what has happened recently. But things can change quickly. … The only solutions we have right now are in that locker room. We have the competitive character,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the loss to the Knicks, according to ESPN.

Gabe Vincent led the Heat with 21 points and three assists, while Tyler Herro added 16 markers.

Noticeably missing from the scoring parade were Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.

Butler finished with 12 points and six assists, while Adebayo only had nine markers and 11 boards.

The Heat and the Mavericks will try to bounce back with a win Saturday with game time set for 7:30 p.m. EDT. The encounter will be telecast over NBA TV, with live streaming available via FuboTV.