Miami scores a wire-to-wire dub over the visiting Pelicans

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Miami Heat fired on all cylinders to frustrate the New Orleans Pelicans, 125-106, during an inter-conference matchup in the ongoing NBA regular season on Jan. 5, 2026, at the Kaseya Center.

After an insane 43-point outburst in just the opening quarter, Miami never looked back and dominated the Pelicans in the next three frames to secure the bounce-back victory in front of an energetic 19,600 fans who flocked to Florida.

Miami still had lingering issues fresh off a tight loss at the hands of Minnesota, but all thanks to Norman Powell, who suddenly flipped the switch, turning a mano-a-mano contest into a lopsided affair as the second half neared.

Powell was a one-man wrecking machine as he single-handedly outscored the Pelicans in the last five minutes of the second quarter, driving down the lane at will while hitting insane step-back three-pointers.

It didn’t take long for the rest of the Heat squad to backstop their star shooting guard as Nikola Jovic, Kel’el Ware, and Pelle Larsson regained their offensive stroke to spearhead a 23-15 third-quarter scoring advantage.

Powell took a breather and let his teammates score, but came back scorching hot from the field once he re-entered the hardwood at the 9:43 mark of the final frame.

Head coach Erik Spoelstra inserted Powell back when the Pelicans trimmed a 21-point deficit to just nine, and the newcomer immediately delivered, repaying the trust of the coaching staff as he ignited an 8-0 Miami run that ballooned their cushion back to double digits.

The duo of Trey Murphy and Jeremiah Fears did all they could to salvage one final hoorah for New Orleans, but Powell’s consecutive offensive conversions put the icing on the cake, with Bam Adebayo’s interior defense serving as the final nail in the coffin.

For four straight quarters, New Orleans never won a single frame, stifled by the Heat’s efficient defense on the perimeter after they tallied 19 steals.

The Heat also took care of the ball better than the Pelicans and were up by 11 in the turnover counter, while also out-hustling them in second-chance points, 18-11.

Powell capped off another stellar scoring display with 34 points built from nine made three-pointers, alongside three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

Meanwhile, Jovic bounced back from a sub-par shooting outing and torched New Orleans with 19 markers, six boards, three steals, and two blocks.

The duo of Ware and Larsson chipped in 16 points apiece, while Adebayo almost notched a triple-double with 12 points, six boards, six dimes, a steal, and a block.

Miami will look to vent its ire in a rematch against the Timberwolves on Jan. 7, 2026, but this time, on the road at the Target Center.