Herro goes from raising eyebrows to turning heads as Heat knock out Bulls in Play-In Tournament

CHICAGO (AP) — Tyler Herro went from raising eyebrows with a shot he missed to turning heads one week later with all the baskets he made. Both times, he did it for Miami in Chicago.

Herro had it going, scoring 38 points as the Heat pounded the Bulls 109-90 to advance in the Play-In Tournament on Wednesday.

“I’ve been saying this all year,” Bam Adebayo said. “It’s good for him to have these types of moments. In past years, he’s been injured and (had) his name thrown in the mud. To have a year like this, I’ve got the utmost respect for the kid. He’s doing his thing. He’s out there playing basketball free and putting the ball in the basket.”

Herro came through in a big way one week after he made a questionable decision late in a loss at Chicago. He hit 13 of 19 shots as the Heat knocked the Bulls out of the Play-In Tournament for the third year in a row.

Miami plays at Atlanta on Friday for a chance to meet top-seeded Cleveland in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Hawks lost to Orlando on Tuesday.

“We knew what our path was, it was gonna take two wins on the road, which we’re capable of,” Herro said. “We knew that from the beginning. We’re excited for this challenge going into Atlanta.”

Herro set the tone, scoring 23 points as Miami grabbed a 71-47 halftime lead. The All-Star guard made his first eight shots before missing a 3 in the opening minute of the third quarter. He also scored seven in the fourth, helping Miami withstand a push by the Bulls.

Herro also had a big game in Chicago one week earlier, when he led the Heat with 30 points. Miami lost 119-111, and a decision near the end overshadowed all the shots he made that night.

The Heat were trailing by eight in that one when Herro nailed a 3 with just under a minute remaining. He then poked the ball away from Chicago's Coby White near midcourt. Rather than go for a layup or dunk with no one in his way and a chance to make it a one-possession game, he opted to pull up for a 3 from the left wing. The Bulls' Kevin Huerter got the rebound and passed to Matas Buzelis for a 3 that sealed the win.

“Tyler's a great competitor,” coach Erik Spoelstra said after Wednesday's win. “Look, we were fighting to get back. That would have been an absolute steal if we got that game. If he made the shot, I tell you what, it would have been a whole lot more interesting those last two possessions. He's a great competitor. He knew he was gonna have to bring a lot to this game. Offensively, he was there pretty much at every level all game long.”

The Bulls got the payback they were seeking after Chicago swept three regular-season games. Herro was a big reason why.

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Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis, left, guard Kevin Huerter and center Nikola Vucevic, right, during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game in Chicago, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro reacts after scoring a basket during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Miami Heat in Chicago, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro celebrates with fans after the Heat defeated the Chicago Bulls in an NBA play-in tournament basketball game in Chicago, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, left top, drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game in Chicago, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, right, hugs head coach Erik Spoelstra during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Chicago Bulls in Chicago, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)