Bam! Heat's Adebayo scores 83 points, 2nd only to Wilt Chamberlain in NBA history

MIAMI (AP) — It's Wilt, then Bam.

Bam Adebayo had a night for all time on Tuesday, with a point total second to only Wilt Chamberlain in the NBA record books. Adebayo scored 83 points, setting league marks for free throws made and attempted in a game for the Miami Heat in a 150-129 win over the Washington Wizards.

“An absolutely surreal night,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Obviously, we’ve been blessed to have been part of a lot of big moments in this arena. This one, it just happened. Moments happen and I’m grateful that we’re all able to be a part of it and witness it.”

Chamberlain's record of 100 points has stood since 1962. Kobe Bryant — one of Adebayo's basketball heroes — was No. 2 on the list with 81. Adebayo never thought he'd be in that club.

And then came a night he'll never forget.

“Wilt, me, then Kobe,” Adebayo said. “It sounds crazy.”

Adebayo’s final numbers: 20 of 43 from the field, 36 of 43 from the foul line, 7 for 22 from 3-point range.

He was in tears as he hugged his mother, Marilyn Blount, before leaving the floor after the game. Emotions were kept in check, until then.

“For me, it was just remaining calm, remaining locked in and understanding that I can go for something special,” Adebayo said. “I didn’t think it was going to be 83. But to have this moment is surreal, because like I said, man, to be able to do it at home, in front of my mom, in front of my people, in front of the home fans, this is a mark in history that will forever be remembered.”

Adebayo's career high, before Monday, was 41.

That was passed by halftime.

“I looked at the stat sheet. It was pretty crazy: 40 shots, 40 free throws, 20 3s, that takes a lot of stamina, man," Houston star and Adebayo's USA Basketball teammate Kevin Durant said. “It takes a lot of energy to go out there and put those shots up and also make them, set a record, surpass Kobe as the second highest-scoring player in the history of the game. I mean, damn. Congrats to him. Huge, huge accomplishment, something we're going to be talking about forever.”

Adebayo started with a 31-point first quarter and never stopped rolling. He was up to 43 at halftime, 62 by the end of the third quarter. And then came the fourth, when the milestones kept falling despite facing double-, triple- and what once appeared to be a quadruple-team from a Wizards defense that kept sending him to the foul line.

“BAM BAM BAM,” former Heat forward LeBron James posted on social media. James had the Heat single-game record of 61 points, set on March 3, 2014. He's now No. 2 on the team list — by a wide margin.

The NBA's previous best this season was 56, by Nikola Jokic for Denver against Minnesota on Christmas night. The last player to have 62 points through three quarters was Bryant, who had exactly that many going into the fourth for the Los Angeles Lakers against Dallas on Dec. 20, 2005.

Adebayo got to the line 16 times in the fourth, and the game had some comical moments. The Heat made clear they kept wanting Adebayo to get the ball and get to the line, even in a blowout. The Wizards tried to foul others — but couldn't stop the scoring onslaught.

“You’ve got to give him credit," Wizards coach Brian Keefe said. "In the first half he shot the ball terrific, he scored the ball really well. Obviously, he came out and had a little bit in the third, too. They obviously kept him in the game, and there was a lot of fouls called — 16 free throws in the fourth quarter. I was trying to take the ball out of his hands, he still got some free throws 40 feet from the rim. I can’t explain some of those calls. That’s all I got to say on that.”

And Adebayo only needed the first half to set a career high, too.

Adebayo's 31 points in the opening quarter broke the Heat record for points in any quarter — and tied the team record for points in a first half before the second quarter even started.

He finished the first half with 43 points, a team record for any half and two points better than his previous career high — for a full game, that is — set Jan. 23, 2021, against Brooklyn.

Adebayo’s season high entering Tuesday was 32. He matched that with a free throw with 5:53 left in the second quarter, breaking the Heat first-half scoring record.

He was just getting started.

“I would say once he got to 50, then we’re thinking, all right, maybe he can get to 60,” Spoelstra said.

He got to 60, late in the third.

“And when he got to 60, it just kept on going,” Spoelstra said. “We might as well go for 70.”

He got to 70,

“And then, I didn’t dare even think about taking him out at that point,” Spoelstra said. “We just kept on going.”

When Spoelstra finally declared Adebayo's night over, he was waiting to greet the center with a big hug. Teammates did the same, as did some of the Wizards after the final buzzer. Adebayo made his way over to Heat managing general partner Micky Arison for congratulations, before eventually getting to the locker room.

Everyone wanted his jersey, which he kept. The game ball was secured. The nets were cut down as souvenirs. A'ja Wilson, Adebayo's longtime girlfriend and the four-time WNBA MVP, could barely keep from crying.

“I know he says that I’m his inspiration,” Wilson said. “But I don’t think he has a clue how much he inspires me to continue to be the person that I am.”

Finally, Adebayo made his way to the parking garage, exhausted. He never had an opportunity to meet Bryant, who died in 2020, and often wonders what it would be like to have him as a confidant. He had those same thoughts Tuesday, after topping Bryant's 81.

“Just a surreal moment,” Adebayo said, “being in the company with somebody I idolized growing up.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra hugs center Bam Adebayo (13) as he leaves the game after scoring 83 points, the second-highest single game total in NBA history, in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo, right, celebrates with teammates after he scored 83 points, the second-highest single game total in NBA history, in an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, center, and players react during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, as center Bam Adebayo (13) plays on his way to scoring 83 points, the second-highest single game total in NBA history, in an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Fans and Miami Heat players on the bench stand to watch as center Bam Adebayo (13) takes a free throw, on his way to scoring 83 points, the second-highest single game total in NBA history, in an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Heat teammates celebrate center Bam Adebayo (13) after he scored 83 points, the second-highest single game total in NBA history, in an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) passes to forward Myron Gardner (15) as Washington Wizards center Alex Sarr looks on during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) aims to score as Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) defends during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

HOUSTON (AP) — Artemis II’s astronauts closed out humanity’s first lunar voyage in more than half a century with a Pacific splashdown on Friday, blazing new records near the moon with grace and joy.

It was a dramatic grand finale to a mission that revealed not only swaths of the lunar far side never seen before by human eyes, but a total solar eclipse and a parade of planets, most notably our own shimmering Earth against the endless black void of space.

With their flight now complete, the four astronauts have set NASA up for a moon landing by another crew in just two years and a full-blown moon base within the decade.

The triumphant moon-farers — commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen — emerged from their bobbing capsule into the sunlight off the coast of San Diego.

In a scene reminiscent of NASA’s Apollo moonshots of yesteryear, military helicopters hoisted the astronauts one by one from an inflatable raft docked to the capsule, hauling them aboard for the short trip to the Navy’s awaiting recovery ship, the USS John P. Murtha.

“These were the ambassadors from humanity to the stars that we sent out there right now, and I can’t imagine a better crew,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said from the recovery ship.

Their Orion capsule, dubbed Integrity, made the entire plunge on automatic pilot. The lunar cruiser hit the atmosphere traveling Mach 33 — or 33 times the speed of sound — a blistering blur not seen since the 1960s and 1970s Apollo.

The tension in Mission Control mounted as the capsule became engulfed in red-hot plasma during peak heating and entered a planned communication blackout. All eyes were on the capsule’s life-protecting heat shield that had to withstand thousands of degrees during reentry.

Watching the drama unfold nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) away, hundreds of jubilant workers jammed Mission Control to celebrate the splashdown. Astronauts’ families huddled in a viewing room, where cheers erupted when the capsule emerged from its six-minute blackout and again at splashdown.

The last time NASA and the Defense Department teamed up for a lunar crew’s reentry was Apollo 17 in 1972. Artemis II was projected to come screaming back at 36,170 feet (11,025 meters) per second — or 24,661 mph (39,668 kph) — just shy of the record before slowing to a 19 mph (30 kph) splashdown.

Until Artemis II, NASA’s fresh-from-the-moon homecomings starred only white male pilots. Intent on reflecting changes in society, NASA chose a diverse, multinational crew for its lunar comeback.

Koch became the first woman to fly to the moon, Glover the first Black astronaut and Hansen the first non-U.S. citizen, bursting Canada with pride. They laughed, cried and hugged all the way there and back, striving to take the entire world along with them.

Launched from Florida on April 1, the astronauts racked up one win after another as they deftly navigated NASA’s long-awaited lunar comeback, the first major step in establishing a sustainable moon base.

Artemis II didn't land on the moon or even orbit it. But it broke Apollo 13's distance record and marked the farthest that humans have ever journeyed from Earth when the crew reached 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometers). Then in the mission's most heart-tugging scene, the teary astronauts asked permission to name a pair of craters after their moonship and Wiseman's late wife, Carroll.

During Monday's record-breaking flyby, they documented scenes of the moon's far side never seen before by the human eye along with a total solar eclipse. The eclipse, in particular, “just blew all of us away,” Glover said.

Their sense of wonder and love awed everyone, as did their breathtaking pictures of the moon and Earth. The Artemis II crew channeled Apollo 8's first lunar explorers with Earthset, showing our Blue Marble setting behind the gray moon. It was reminiscent of Apollo 8’s famous Earthrise shot from 1968.

“We are back in the business of sending astronauts to the moon, bringing them back safely and to set up for a series more," Isaacman said. "This is just the beginning.”

Isaacman greeted the astronauts with hugs as they headed from the helicopters to ship’s medical bay for routine checks. They walked by themselves, refusing the wheelchairs offered them.

Their moonshot drew global attention as well as star power, earning props from President Donald Trump; Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney; Britain's King Charles III; Ryan Gosling, star of the latest space flick “Project Hail Mary”; Scarlett Johansson of the Marvel Cinematic Universe; and even Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner of TV’s original “Star Trek.”

Despite its rich scientific yield, the nearly 10-day flight was not without technical issues. Both the capsule’s drinking water and propellant systems were hit with valve problems. In perhaps the most high-profile predicament, the toilet kept malfunctioning, but the astronauts shrugged it all off.

“We can’t explore deeper unless we are doing a few things that are inconvenient,” Koch said, “unless we’re making a few sacrifices, unless we’re taking a few risks, and those things are all worth it.”

Added Hansen: “You do a lot of testing on the ground, but your final test is when you get this hardware to space and it’s a doozy.”

Under the revamped Artemis program, next year’s Artemis III will see astronauts practice docking their capsule with a lunar lander or two in orbit around Earth. Artemis IV will attempt to land a crew of two near the moon’s south pole in 2028.

The Artemis II astronauts' allegiance was to those future crews, Wiseman said.

“But we really hoped in our soul is that we could for just for a moment have the world pause and remember that this is a beautiful planet and a very special place in our universe, and we should all cherish what we have been gifted,” he said.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

People wait for a glimpse of the return of NASA's Artemis II Friday, April 10, 2026, along the beach in Coronado, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

In this photo provided by NASA, the Orion spacecraft with Artemis II crewmembers aboard approaches the surface of the Pacific Ocean for splashdown off the coast of California, Friday, April 10, 2026. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)

In this photo provided by NASA, the Orion spacecraft with Artemis II crewmembers aboard approaches the surface of the Pacific Ocean for splashdown off the coast of California, Friday, April 10, 2026. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)

In this image from video provided by NASA, the Artemis II Orion capsule splashes down in the Pacific Ocean, on Friday, April 10, 2026. (NASA via AP)

In this photo provided by NASA, U.S. Navy divers prepare to deploy in small boats from the well deck of USS John P. Murtha to recover Artemis II crew members NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist and NASA's Orion spacecraft in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, Friday, April 10, 2026. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)

In this image from video provided by NASA, the Artemis II Orion capsule, right, separates from the service module above the Earth in preparation for splash down in the Pacific Ocean. (NASA via AP)

In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew, counterclockwise from top left, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, Commander Reid Wiseman, and Pilot Victor Glover pose with eclipse viewers during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)

In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew photographed the Moons curved limb during their journey around the far side of the Moon on April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)

In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew photographed a bright portion of the Moon on April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)

In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew captured this view as the Earth sets behind the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)