Heat beats Warriors behind big nights from Herro, Cain: Takeaways and details

Five takeaways from the Heat’s 114-102 win against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night in San Francisco:

▪ The short-handed Heat began their road trip with a superb performance. Miami never trailed in the second half and extended a four-point third quarter lead to 20-plus in the fourth.

To win comfortably at Golden State is impressive enough. To do it without four rotation players was even more notable.

Miami played without Jimmy Butler (calf), Josh Richardson (back), Caleb Martin (ankle), Kyle Lowry (soreness) and Orlando Robinson (G-League assignment).

Also keep in mind that the Warriors entered having won eight consecutive home games and averaging 122 points in those games.

The Heat has now won 10 of its last 13 on the road, including four in a row. And Miami is the only Eastern Conference team with 10 road wins.

The Heat stormed to a 14-point first half lead, saw the Warriors close to within 71-67 in the third but then pushed the margin to 91-76 after three. Golden State never drew closer than 12 in the final quarter.

Miami got a huge lift from Jamal Cain, who had 18 points and six rebounds, and Tyler Herro, who had 26 points and 7 rebounds.

Bam Adebayo chipped in 17 points and 11 boards, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. came alive in the second half to finish with 17 points, five rebounds and six assists. And Nikola Jovic (11 points) had his best game of the season.

The injuries created the need for yet another new starting lineup: Herro, Adebayo, Haywood Highsmith, Jaquez Jr. and R.J. Hampton.

The Heat’s defense was very good, but Miami also capitalized on a night when Steph Curry and the other Warriors shooters were misfiring.

Golden State shot 42 percent from the field and 24.2 percent on threes (8 for 33).

The Heat, meanwhile, closed at 48.4 percent from the field.

And Miami outrebounded Golden State, 44-43, significant because the Warriors entered with the league’s third best rebounding differential.

▪ Herro outplayed Curry and outscored him 26 to 13.

Curry opened 0 for 3 and didn’t score until hitting a three with 3:44 left in the second quarter. He then erupted for 10 to close the first half.

But Curry scored only three in the third quarter and went to the fourth shooting 3 for 11.

He then missed his first four shots of the fourth quarter and closed 3 for 15, including 2 for 8 on threes.

Curry entered averaging 27.9 points, which is eighth in the league.

His Splash Brother, Klay Thompson, shot 4 for 11 and 2 for 6 on threes, also finishing with 13.

The Warriors’ eight threes were a season-low.

Herro scored 14 in the first half, then added seven in the third.

And after the Warriors closed to within 107-94 in the fourth, Herro hit a big three, his first points of the quarter.

He continues to play the game efficiently; he shot 10 for 18 from the field on Thursday, including 3 for 7 on threes.

Herro entered averaging a career-high 24 points on 42.7 percent three- point shooting.

▪ Two of the Heat’s two-way players were thrust into significant roles.

In his fourth game for the Heat, Hampton made his ninth NBA start and did a good job defending Curry.

Hampton had a few offensive highlights, including a nifty drive past Chris Paul for a layup, a layup off a nice pass from Jaquez and a turnaround jumper.

Hampton closed with seven points (3 for 6 shooting), three assists and a turnover in 24 minutes.

Meanwhile, Cain gave Miami a huge lift off the bench in the first half, with seven points and two rebounds and active, disruptive defense.

He scored eight more in the third, including a nifty reverse layup.

Cain matched his career high with the 18 points.

Cole Swider, the Heat’s third two-way player, was active but did not play until the final minute.

▪ Jovic, the Heat’s 2022 first-round pick, made the most of his fifth appearance of the season. And Jaquez, the Heat’s 2023 first-round pick, gave Miami a lift in the second half.

Jovic appeared in just his fifth game this season and seized on the opportunity, with 11 points, three rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block. Miami outscored Golden State by 10 points in his 20 minutes.

Given a chance to create offense for himself off the dribble, Jovic scored six in the first half, with two rebounds and two assists. And it helped that the Heat played zone during some of his minutes, because that protected him defensively.

After being summoned off the bench early in the fourth quarter, Jovic hit a layup (and a free throw) off a nice pass from Duncan Robinson, drew an offensive foul from Curry and then hit a finger roll to put the Heat up 22.

After a relatively quiet five-point first half, Jaquez was menace in the third quarter, with eight points and three assists.

“He’s strong, physical, very skilled,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s made a big impact.”

▪ The Heat did an immaculate job taking care of the ball.

Miami had only two turnovers through nearly three quarters – both by Herro, who did more than enough to compensate. Miami finished with seven turnovers, per ESPN.

The Heat entered averaging 13.3 turnovers per game, which is 11th best in the league.

Miami – which plays at Utah on Saturday (5 p.m., Bally Sports Sun) – moved to season-best seven games over .500 at 19-12. The Heat stands fourth in the East, a half game ahead of Orlando.