Herro-ic display downs Bulls

Tyler Herro went from raising eyebrows with a shot he missed, to turning heads one week later with all the baskets he made. Both times, he did it for Miami in Chicago.

Herro had it going, scoring 38 points as the Heat pounded the Bulls 109-90 to advance in the playin tournament on Wednesday.

"I've been saying this all year," Bam Adebayo said. "It's good for him to have these types of moments. In past years, he's been injured and (had) his name thrown in the mud. To have a year like this, I've got the utmost respect for the kid. He's doing his thing. He's out there playing basketball freely, and putting the ball in the basket."

Herro came through in a big way one week after he made a questionable decision late in a loss at Chicago. He hit 13 of 19 shots, as the Heat knocked the Bulls out of the play-in tournament for the third year in a row.

Miami plays at Atlanta on Friday for a chance to meet top-seeded Cleveland in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Hawks lost to Orlando on Tuesday.

"We knew what our path was, it was gonna take two wins on the road, which we're capable of," Herro said. "We knew that from the beginning. We're excited for this challenge going into Atlanta."

Herro set the tone, scoring 23 points, as Miami grabbed a 71-47 halftime lead. The All-Star guard made his first eight shots before missing a 3 in the opening minute of the third quarter. He also scored seven in the fourth, helping Miami withstand a push by the Bulls.

Herro also had a big game in Chicago one week earlier, when he led the Heat with 30 points. Miami lost 119-111, and a decision near the end overshadowed all the shots he made that night.

The Heat were trailing by eight in that one, when Herro nailed a 3 with just under a minute remaining. He then poked the ball away from Chicago's Coby White near midcourt. Rather than go for a layup or dunk with no one in his way, and a chance to make it a one-possession game, he opted to pull up for a 3 from the left wing. The Bulls' Kevin Huerter got the rebound and passed to Matas Buzelis for a 3 that sealed the win.

"Tyler's a great competitor," coach Erik Spoelstra said after Wednesday's win.

"Look, we were fighting to get back. That would have been an absolute steal if we got that game. If he made the shot, I tell you what, it would have been a whole lot more interesting, those last two possessions. He's a great competitor. He knew he was gonna have to bring a lot to this game. Offensively, he was there pretty much at every level all game long."

The Bulls got the payback they were seeking after Chicago swept three regular-season games. Herro was a big reason why.

"We felt we shouldn't have dropped those three games throughout the season," Herro said. "Obviously, we felt like we've won almost every quarter we've played against them, except for one or two in each game, and then they've been able to win at the end. They're a good team, play fast, which is hard to deal with if you're not prepping for it and really concentrating."

Chicago hardly resembled the team that won all three of its regular-season meetings with Miami. The Bulls committed 18 turnovers and conceded 26 points off those miscues, as their season came to an end.

Bulls coach Billy Donovan said, "The disappointing part was that we didn't play to our identity. We just didn't. I talked before the game about turnovers. We had 10 of them, I mean 11 in the first half. You can't win like that.

"We didn't read the game well enough, and I'm hopeful for some of our guys that this can be a real good growth opportunity."

Herro bolted out of the blocks with a flourish, sinking all six shots he attempted from the floor — including a pair of 3-pointers — and both free-throw attempts in the first quarter. His offensive outburst helped Miami seize a 39-28 lead at the end of the quarter.

Herro improved to 8-for-8 from the floor after draining his third 3-pointer to extend the Heat's advantage to 69-44 late in the second quarter.

"He knew he was going to have to bring a lot to this game," Spoelstra said. Quietly, I thought he had a really good defensive game, and we need that as we move on to Atlanta.

"He wants to prove that he's a two-way player, and I love that about him."

The Bulls upped their intensity coming out of intermission, trimming a 24-point halftime deficit to 13 at 93-80 early in the fourth quarter.

Miami, however, went on a 12-2 run, with Herro highlighting that surge by making three free throws, a short jumper and a driving layup.

Agencies