1st Quarter Report
The Heat are on the road but looking no worse for wear. They have jumped out to a quick 29-23 lead against the Trail Blazers.
If the Heat keep playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 20-17 in no time. On the other hand, the Trail Blazers will have to make due with a 13-25 record unless they turn things around.
Who’s Playing
Miami Heat @ Portland Trail Blazers
Current Records: Miami 19-17, Portland 13-24
How To Watch
- When: Saturday, January 11, 2025 at 10 p.m. ET
- Where: Moda Center at the Rose Quarter — Portland, Oregon
- TV: KATU 2.2 ABC
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $9.99
What to Know
The Miami Heat’s road trip will continue as they head out to face the Portland Trail Blazers at 10:00 p.m. ET on Saturday at Moda Center at the Rose Quarter. The Trail Blazers took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on the Heat, who come in off a win.
The Heat are headed into this one after the oddsmakers set last week’s over/under low at 222.5, but even that wound up being too high. They secured a 97-92 W over the Jazz on Thursday.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead the Heat to victory, but perhaps none more so than Jaime Jaquez Jr., who went 7 for 11 en route to 20 points plus seven assists and seven rebounds. Jaquez Jr. continues to roll, besting his previous point total in each of the last four games he’s played. Duncan Robinson, on the other hand, was considerably less helpful: he went 0-5 from deep.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers traveled a rocky road last season, and unfortunately for them the road hasn’t gotten any smoother so far this season. They took a 117-111 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Mavericks. The loss hurts even more since Portland was up 87-75 with 2:04 left in the third.
Miami’s victory bumped their record up to 19-17. As for Portland, their loss dropped their record down to 13-24.
Saturday’s match is shaping up to be a scrappy matchup: The Heat haven’t given up the ball easily this season, having only averaged 12.4 turnovers per game (they’re ranked fifth in turnovers per game overall). It’s a different story for the Trail Blazers, though, as they’ve been averaging 15.6. Given the Heat’s sizable advantage in that area, the Trail Blazers will need to find a way to close that gap.
Everything came up roses for the Heat against the Trail Blazers when the teams last played back in March of 2024, as the team secured a 142-82 win. In that game, the Heat amassed a halftime lead of 74-40, an impressive feat they’ll look to repeat on Saturday.
Odds
Miami is a 3.5-point favorite against Portland, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 3.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 219 points.
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Series History
Miami has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Portland.
- Mar 29, 2024 – Miami 142 vs. Portland 82
- Feb 27, 2024 – Miami 106 vs. Portland 96
- Nov 07, 2022 – Portland 110 vs. Miami 107
- Oct 26, 2022 – Miami 119 vs. Portland 98
- Jan 19, 2022 – Miami 104 vs. Portland 92
- Jan 05, 2022 – Miami 115 vs. Portland 109
- Apr 11, 2021 – Miami 107 vs. Portland 98
- Mar 25, 2021 – Portland 125 vs. Miami 122
- Feb 09, 2020 – Portland 115 vs. Miami 109
- Jan 05, 2020 – Miami 122 vs. Portland 111
