Miami got off to a hot start with Gabe Vincent and Bam getting on the board almost immediately. It was a good sign seeing Bam go into attack mode right away. With Bam, Strus, and others playing well the Heat got out to a 9-2 start. Still, even with Bam being an absolute monster, Philly’s weapons worked to chip away at the lead with Maxey and Harris leading the charge for the Sixers. Nevertheless, Miami surged early getting out a 10-point lead.
Miami extended that lead with impressive offensive play from Jimmy and hard-nosed defense but Philly switched to a zone at the tail-end of the first quarter, slowing down the Heat on offense and getting Dedmon into foul trouble.