Nikola Jovic's career-high 29 points lead the Heat past the Trail Blazers 136-131

Nikola Jovic's Career-High 29 Points Lead Miami Heat Past Portland Trail Blazers 136-131

Nikola Jovic delivered a career-high 29 points off the bench, adding nine rebounds and seven assists as the Miami Heat narrowly defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 136-131 on Saturday night.

Norman Powell contributed 22 points for Miami, with Pelle Larsson scoring 16, Andrew Wiggins 15, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. putting up a solid performance with 14 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists. Kel’el Ware secured 12 rebounds for the Heat.

Jovic's previous career best was 24 points. On the Portland side, Deni Avdija, averaging 25.3 points this season, scored 33 points in the first game of a five-game road trip. The Trail Blazers also received 21 points from Shaedon Sharpe, and 18 points each from Jrue Holiday and Jerami Grant.

The fourth quarter was tightly contested, with neither team leading by more than four points until the final moments. Holiday tied the game at 123 with a 3-pointer with 3:26 remaining, setting up a dramatic finish.

“Wiggins' 3-pointer with 1:32 left gave Miami a 132-127 lead, and the Heat held on from there,”

improving Miami's home record to 4-0 this season. The Heat also reached 6-2 in games where they score at least 115 points, while they are 0-2 when scoring under 115.

Despite setting a franchise record with 53 first-quarter points in Friday’s game, Miami started Saturday cold, missing 14 of their first 15 shots and falling behind 15-3 early. However, they quickly recovered to secure the win.

Summary: Nikola Jovic's standout 29-point performance off the bench led a resilient Miami Heat team to a 136-131 victory over Portland after overcoming a slow start.

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Newsday Newsday — 2025-11-09

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