The Heat made history against the Thunder on Tuesday night, breaking a record that stood for over 40 years.
Miami notched a 112-111 win at home, going a perfect 40-for-40 from the free throw line. That set a new NBA record for most free throws made by a team without a miss, topping the mark of 39 set by the Jazz in 1982. In a one-point win, they needed every one of them.
Star forward Jimmy Butler led the charge, going 23-for-23 from the charity stripe, including the game-winning free throw with 12 seconds remaining. He finished the game with 35 points and seven rebounds.
Though a historic performance, Tuesday’s showing wasn’t exactly out of character for the Heat. Miami came into the game with a team free throw shooting mark of 81.9%, the third-best in the league. Butler had converted free throws at an 82.5% clip before the game and is an 84.0% free-throw shooter for his career.
The Thunder, meanwhile, shot a woeful 14-for-21 (66.7%) from the line for the game, including two misses by Kenrich Williams with 22 seconds remaining in the fourth and Oklahoma City clinging to a two-point lead. Perhaps the team can study Miami’s virtuoso free throw performance to turn in better results going forward.
