The Miami Heat were up by 11 over Charlotte with 6:47 left on Monday. They led by 11 over Chicago going into the fourth quarter Saturday. They led 10 over New York midway through the fourth quarter on March 2.
All at home, too.
And all ended up as losses.
College basketball has March Madness. The Heat have March sadness. Blown leads are becoming commonplace for the Heat, who lost 105-102 to the Hornets on Monday night — yet another costly collapse. And now it’s a team simply searching for answers.
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“We went through too much this season to let go of the rope now,” Heat captain Bam Adebayo said.
The Heat — who are 9-18 in their past 27 games, a stretch that started with Jimmy Butler III being oft-suspended before eventually traded to Golden State for Andrew Wiggins — have lost a league-high 11 times this season when leading after three quarters, already the third most in any season in franchise history.
And they’ve lost nine games after leading by at least 15 points, three of those coming in a nine-day span that ended Monday.
“In terms of our spirit, we’ll be fine,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We just have to forge ahead. You have to forge. Sometimes you get tested. Sometimes you get tested in a way that you don’t want to be tested in this league. And you can fold the tent, or you just keep on forging and forging and forging. And that’s what our group is going to do.”
The Heat are the first team to lose seven games after holding double-digit fourth-quarter leads since Memphis did it in 2018-19.
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“We’ve just got to find a way to get ourselves out of this hole,” guard Tyler Herro said. “This isn’t fun for anybody. It’s a tough time right now. But we’re staying with it. We’ll figure this out.”
This isn’t just a recent trend for Miami. Fourth quarters have been trouble all season. The Heat had a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter at Orlando on Dec. 21 and lost by seven — being outscored 37-8 in the final 12 minutes.
And there was another nine-day span of down-the-stretch disasters in February. The Heat were outscored 39-21 in the fourth quarter of a nine-point loss to Chicago on Feb. 4, 31-9 in a 16-point loss at Brooklyn on Feb. 7 and 32-8 in the fourth quarter of a loss at Oklahoma City on Feb. 12.
“We’ve got a very tough-minded group and that’s what we need right now,” Spoelstra said. “Even some veterans in the locker room, or a veteran coach like myself, you just realize how tough it is to win in this league. It really is. On any given night, it is a challenge. We just have to stay together and figure this out.”
This run of losses in March has even put playoff plans in serious peril. The Heat — who are ninth in the Eastern Conference — will almost certainly have to get through the play-in tournament just to have a chance at getting to the first round of the postseason, where NBA-leading Cleveland or reigning champion Boston probably will be waiting.
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“We just have to stay together and use this an opportunity, a growth opportunity to overcome something that sucks,” Spoelstra said. “We’re going to figure this out.”
ORLANDO, Fla. — Lionel Messi scored twice in a four-goal second half, defender Telasco Segovia added a goal and two assists and defending champion Inter Miami CF rallied to beat Orlando City SC 4-2 on Sunday night, winning for the first time at Inter&Co Stadium.
Messi took a pass from Segovia and scored in the 57th minute to tie it 2-2, and Segovia scored unassisted in the 85th for the lead. Messi put the finishing touch on the victory when he scored off a free kick in the 90th.
“The victory belongs exclusively to the players,” Miami coach Javier Mascherano said after the game. “In the second half, they were a championship team. There were no tactics, nothing like that. There was heart, courage, possession, resilience, commitment. I think the team came out because they were champions last year.
“In the end, the players showed it. This victory is theirs.”
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Messi’s first two goals of the season give him 52 in his first 55 regular-season MLS matches — 51 of them in his past 49 appearances. It also brought the reigning MLS MVP to 898 career goals scored, including 672 for Barcelona and 115 for Argentina.
“He’s the best player to ever play this sport. He’s a leader, and as a leader, he inspires others, but he also often needs to be inspired himself,” Mascherano said of Messi. “When he was driving forward, he had more attacking options, and with so many opportunities, he clearly has the ability to create chances like no one else, and that’s what allowed us to turn the game around.”
Marco Pašalić took a pass from Iván Angulo and scored in the 18th minute to give Orlando City a 1-0 lead. Pašalić has scored in four straight matches against Inter Miami.
Inter Miami players celebrate after scoring a goal against Orlando City in MLS.
Defender Griffin Dorsey set up Martín Ojeda for a goal six minutes later for a 2-0 advantage that stood through halftime.
Inter Miami cut it to 2-1 four minutes into the second half on Mateo Silvetti’s first career goal. Defenders Segovia and Facundo Mura had assists as the 20-year-old forward found the net in his fifth career appearance.
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Segovia had eight goals and six assists as a rookie last season, while Mura collected his first assist in his first season.
Dayne St. Clair, the reigning goalkeeper of the year, turned away three shots — all in the second half of his second start with Inter Miami, but let in a soft goal for Orlando’s first.
Maxime Crépeau had four saves in his second start for Orlando City.
Teenager Colin Guske, 19, will miss Orlando City’s next match after the rookie picked up two yellow cards in his first start — the second one led to his exit in the 88th minute.
Inter Miami, which had never won in its previous nine trips to Orlando, was coming off a 3-0 road loss to LAFC.
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Orlando City swept Inter Miami during the regular season last year and leads the all-time series 8-7-4.
Inter Miami plays D.C. United on Saturday at Audi Field. Orlando City is also on the road with a match against New York City FC.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this recap.
Rain floods Miami Beach streets, cut short Miami Heat Family Festival
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — Much-needed rain fell across South Florida on Sunday, but the downpour quickly led to flooding and traffic headaches.
“The drainage systems aren’t the best but in ten minutes it will be gone,” one person said.
The rain lasted longer than 10 minutes, flooding several spots along Collins Avenue in Miami Beach.
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In one neighborhood, at least a foot of water blocked the entrance. Drivers who attempted to pass through sent waves crashing onto nearby sidewalks.
The heavy rain also snarled traffic on parts of Interstate 95 and on the bridges to and from Miami Beach, slowing drivers trying to get around the area.
“It’s Miami for you. What do they call it, a sun shower?” one driver said.
The weather disrupted Sunday plans for many. The 26th annual Miami Heat Family Festival was cut short after strong winds swept through Dan Paul Plaza, knocking over several tents.
There is no word yet on how or when the Miami Heat plan to make up the family festival.
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Brett Knese
Brett Knese joined the Local 10 News team as a general assignment reporter in March 2025.
Jack and Jill of America’s Miami chapter closed out Black History Month with an inaugural “Roots Across Waters” trip to Nassau, where families explored ancestral sites, honored the Bahamian labor that helped build early Miami, and donated Afro‑Caribbean children’s books to local students.
