Sacramento @ Miami preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 8, 2019 ) Miami 96, Sacramento 102

The Miami Heat hope to rebound from a disappointing fourth-quarter performance last time out and continue their dominance at home when they host the struggling Sacramento Kings on Monday night. The Heat open a five-game homestand after managing just 18 points in the final 12 minutes to suffer a 107-102 setback at San Antonio on Sunday afternoon - their third loss in the last five contests.

“We just got to be consistent on both ends,” Miami center Bam Adebayo told reporters after recording 21 points and 16 rebounds Sunday. “I feel like we got some good looks, we just missed shots. That’s the thing about this. It’s basketball, it’s round, and it doesn’t always go in.” The Heat will try adding to their impressive home record (18-1) when they take on the Kings, who have won four straight in the series after winning 123-113 in Miami last season as guards Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox combined for 43 points. Sacramento is near the bottom of the Western Conference standings and has dropped four straight contests - allowing 122.8 points per game in the process - after losing 123-101 at Utah on Saturday. “They took us out of everything we wanted to do,” Kings coach Luke Walton told reporters after the latest loss. “We talk about wanting to get up a certain amount of 3s. We couldn’t get 3s because we couldn’t penetrate and make two players guard us.”

TIME: 5 p.m. ET. TV: NBC Sports California, FS Sun

ABOUT THE KINGS (15-27): Fox has been outstanding in January, averaging 23.8 points on 51.8 percent shooting from the field with 8.4 assists in eight games, and is second on the team in scoring (19.3) overall behind Hield (20.1). Forward Marvin Bagley III is averaging 15.7 points and 6.7 rebounds in three games since returning from nearly three weeks off, but left Saturday’s game with a sore foot and is questionable. ESPN reported Sacramento has agreed to trade veteran Trevor Ariza, along with Caleb Swanigan and Wenyen Gabriel, to Portland for Kent Bazemore, Anthony Tolliver and two second-round picks, but it has yet to be made official.

ABOUT THE HEAT (29-13): Adebayo has double-doubles in two of the last three games, averaging 18.7 points along with 12.3 boards in that stretch, and matched swingman Jimmy Butler for the team lead with six assists on Sunday. Veteran guard Goran Dragic added 19 points off the bench in the loss at San Antonio and has drained nine shots from beyond the arc the past three contests while Duncan Robinson scored 12, but missed a 3-pointer with 10.2 seconds left that would have tied the game. Rookie guard Kendrick Nunn scored 18 in the setback and is averaging 23.3 over the last four contests, including 33 in the win over San Antonio last week.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Sacramento F Nemanja Bjelica is averaging 17.2 points in his last five contests, including 34 against Orlando last Monday.

2. Miami’s rookie G Tyler Herro (knee) returned Sunday after missing two games, but did not score in nine minutes.

3. Hield entered Sunday fourth in the league in made 3-pointers per game (3.5), but is 9-for-31 from behind the arc his last four contests

PREDICTION: Heat 116, Kings 102