Giannis Antetokounmpo Scores 34 and Heat Block 14 Shots in 137-117 Rout of Pistons for Fourth Straight Win

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 34 points on 13-of-17 shooting, grabbed 14 rebounds and handed out eight assists, and the Miami Heat blocked 14 shots on the way to a 137-117 win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night at Kaseya Center. The victory was Miami's fourth in a row and lifted the Heat to 7-6, a winning record for a team that opened the season 0-4.

Klay Thompson scored 26 points in his return from a sprained ankle, making six of his 11 attempts from 3-point range, and Bam Adebayo added 20 points. Davion Mitchell finished with 15 points and nine assists. Cade Cunningham led Detroit with 33 points and eight assists, and Kevin Huerter scored 20 off the bench. The Pistons fell to 8-4.

How the game turned

Detroit was the better team for the first 12 minutes. The Pistons, who entered as 4.5-point favorites according to the DraftKings line listed by ESPN, scored the final five points of the opening quarter on a Ronald Holland II 3-pointer and two Javonte Green free throws to take a 39-37 lead. Cunningham's running dunk 23 seconds into the second quarter pushed the margin to 41-37, which turned out to be Detroit's largest lead of the night.

Miami took control from there. Simone Fontecchio scored twice early in the second quarter, Adebayo hit a 3-pointer to give the Heat a 47-45 lead with 7:34 left in the half, and Antetokounmpo scored on a series of layups and a dunk as Miami built a 55-49 cushion. Ryan Conwell's 3-pointer and a late flurry from Antetokounmpo and Mitchell sent the Heat to halftime ahead 68-60. Miami won the second quarter 31-21.

Thompson opened the third quarter by scoring seven points in about 90 seconds: a layup, a fadeaway jumper and a 25-foot pull-up 3-pointer that made it 77-66. Detroit kept answering behind John Collins, who hit two 3-pointers in the period, but Mitchell buried a pair of 3s and Adebayo scored inside as the Heat stretched the lead. Conwell's tip-in at the buzzer made it 103-86 entering the fourth quarter.

The Pistons cut the deficit to 12 points twice early in the final period, the last time at 112-100 with 5:22 to play. Miami then hit three 3-pointers in less than a minute, from Antetokounmpo, Thompson and Mitchell, to open a 121-102 lead. Thompson added two more 3s in a 24-second span inside the final 2:30 to put it away. The Heat's largest lead was the final margin of 20.

Antetokounmpo's two-day run

The performance capped a big back-to-back for Antetokounmpo. He scored 37 points in Friday night's 133-121 win over Cleveland, giving him 71 points in two days. Against Detroit he needed only 31 minutes, made 7 of 9 free throws, blocked three shots and was a plus-17. He also produced one of the highlights of the night in the first quarter, a through-the-legs pass to Thompson for a 3-pointer, according to the Associated Press game story published by ESPN.

Adebayo did much of his damage at the foul line, where he made 9 of 13 attempts, and he contributed three steals and two blocks in 36 minutes. He was a plus-20, the best mark of any player in the game.

A blocked-shot night for the record book

Miami's 14 blocks were one shy of the franchise record, according to the AP. Nine different Heat players recorded at least one block, breaking the team record of eight, which Miami had reached on five occasions. The NBA record is 10 players with a block in the same game, done twice by Golden State, in 1991 and 2016.

The box score shows how widely the work was spread:

The rim protection helped offset Detroit's work on the offensive glass. The Pistons grabbed 22 offensive rebounds to Miami's 13 and outscored the Heat 52-50 in the paint, but they shot 40 percent from the field (39 of 97). Miami shot 51 percent (44 of 87), went 16 of 41 from 3-point range and made 33 of 40 free throws. The Heat also won the transition game decisively, outscoring Detroit 28-11 on fast breaks, and finished with 34 assists and 10 steals.

Thompson closes in on Ray Allen

Thompson's six 3-pointers moved him within 26 of former Heat guard Ray Allen, who ranks third in NBA history with 2,973 made 3-pointers, according to the AP. Thompson shot 10 of 17 overall in 20 minutes, and he was a plus-15 in his first game back from the ankle injury.

Cunningham carries Detroit

Cunningham kept Detroit within range for most of the night, making all 14 of his free throws and going 8 of 20 from the field with three 3-pointers. Huerter shot 9 of 15 and added seven assists. Former Heat guard Duncan Robinson, now with the Pistons, scored 10 points in 17 minutes. Collins had eight points and seven rebounds but made just 3 of 13 shots.

The Pistons played without center Jalen Duren and guard Isaiah Joe, both listed as out on ESPN's injury report. Miami was without guard Pelle Larsson.

What the streak means for Miami

The win was Miami's seventh in its last nine games, matching the Heat's best nine-game stretch since an 8-1 run in November 2023, according to the AP. Miami also became the fourth team in the last 25 seasons to start 0-4 and still hold a winning record after 13 games, joining Sacramento in 2022-23, Oklahoma City in 2018-19 and Dallas in 2006-07.

For South Florida fans, the night also evened the season series with Detroit at 1-1. The Pistons won the first meeting 128-111 in Miami on Oct. 23. The final two meetings are in Detroit.

The crowd of 19,658 saw Miami lead for 82 percent of the game, according to ESPN's team statistics, with nine lead changes, the last of them on Adebayo's go-ahead 3-pointer midway through the second quarter. Miami never trailed again.

What's next

The Heat stay home and host the Houston Rockets on Monday night at Kaseya Center. Detroit continues its road swing at San Antonio on Tuesday night.