The Miami Heat and the Phoenix Suns each won their opening game of the Conference Semifinal Series on Monday. In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Tyler Herro had 25 points as the Heat trounced the Philadelphia 76ers 106-92. Meanwhile, in the Western Conference Semifinals, center Deandre Ayton also reached 25 points as the Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks 121-114.
Miami got off to a strong opening 12 minutes as they outscored Philadelphia 30-22. There was no doubt that the 76ers were missing Joel Embiid, who is out with a fractured orbital bone and a torn ligament in his right thumb.
Five Heat players reached double figures in points. In addition to Herro, Bam Adebayo had 24 points, Jimmy Butler had 15 points, while Gabe Vincent and P.J. Tucker had 10 points each. Adebayo had a double-double as he also had 12 rebounds.
The Heat player that deserved the most praise in game one was clearly Herro, who recaptured some of the playoff success he has had in years past, especially from two years ago in the Orlando bubble. Herro made nine of 17 field goals, four of six three-pointers, and added seven assists.
Meanwhile in the Suns/Mavericks series, the depth of Phoenix clearly showed. Six Suns players reached double digits in scoring. In addition to Ayton’s 25 points, Devin Booker had 23 points, Chris Paul had 19 points, Cameron Johnson had 17 points, Mikal Bridges had 13 points and Jae Crowder had 11 points. The Mavericks meanwhile wasted a fantastic performance from Luka Doncic, who had 45 points and 12 rebounds.
The fact that the Suns have Booker back in the lineup is significant. Their star shooting guard missed three games of their series against the New Orleans Pelicans because of a hamstring injury.
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