Cleveland guard Collin Sexton (2) shoots next to Miami guard Kendrick Nunn during the first half Tuesday in Miami. Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press
MIAMI — Jimmy Butler had 28 points and 12 rebounds, Bam Adebayo returned from a knee issue and finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and six assists, and the Heat eased past the Cleveland Cavaliers 113-98 on Tuesday night.
Kelly Olynyk scored 17 points, Tyler Herro had 15 and Duncan Robinson added 14 for Miami, which won for the 11th time in its last 12 games. But this win was unlike most others for the Heat this season, in that it was only the third in which Miami held a double-digit lead for the entire fourth quarter.
Collin Sexton scored 21 for Cleveland, which got 16 points and eight rebounds from JaVale McGee in 21 minutes on 8-for-10 shooting. It’s been an up-and-down, mostly down, time of late for the Cavaliers — who lost 10 consecutive games, then won four in a row, and have gone 0-4 since.
Larry Nance Jr. scored 14, Darius Garland had 11 and Isaac Okoro added 10 for the Cavaliers, who were held below 100 points for the NBA-leading 17th time this season.
Adebayo hadn’t played since March 2, missing four games with left knee tendinitis. He was 6 for 14 from the field, and his three-point play off a pass from Butler with 1:54 left gave Miami a 108-93 lead — erasing any remaining doubt.
76ERS 99, KNICKS 96: Tobias Harris scored 30 points, Seth Curry had 20 and Philadelphia beat visiting New York for its sixth straight win.
The Sixers (28-12) maintained their grip atop the Eastern Conference standings in large part because Harris got hot in the final minutes. He scored seven straight points, including the tying bucket from 3-feet out and a go-ahead layup that made it 96-92.
Julius Randle had 19 points and 16 rebounds for the Knicks, and RJ Barrett scored 17 points.
The Sixers, again playing without injured All-Star Joel Embiid, had won all three games since the All-Star break by at least 22 points. The Knicks made them work for this one.
BULLS 123, THUNDER 102: Zach LaVine scored 40 points on 15-for-20 shooting, and Chicago beat visiting Oklahoma City for its second straight win.
LaVine led the way as Chicago shot 51% (48 for 94) from the field. The All-Star guard was 7 for 12 from 3-point range. Lauri Markkanen had 22 points for the Bulls, and Thaddeus Young added 17 points and nine rebounds. Tomas Satoransky finished with 13 points and seven assists.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 21 points for Oklahoma City, which had won three of four.
HAWKS 119, ROCKETS 107: Danilo Gallinari scored 20 of his 29 points in the first half and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Houston Rockets 119-107 on Tuesday night for their sixth straight win.
Atlanta’s win streak matched its longest, which came in the first month of the 2016-17 season.
Houston lost its 17th straight game, tying the franchise record by the San Diego Rockets in the team’s inaugural 1967-68 season. The Rockets haven’t won since Feb. 4.
Atlanta led 73-58 at the half, but Houston won the third quarter 34-20 to pull within 93-92 entering the fourth.
The Hawks were without starting and backup centers Clint Capela (heel) and Onyeka Okongwu (adductor). Without their main two big men, the Hawks started power forwards Gallinari and John Collins.
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