The Miami Heat defeated the New Orleans Pelicans, 124-98, at Smoothie King Center on Wednesday night.

The Heat (25-21) checked into the contest the hotter team and played like it early, building a 13-point first-quarter lead over the Pelicans (26-19) that had expanded to 19 by intermission courtesy of a 70-point first-half haul. Miami added another three points to its advantage in the third, setting the stage for the easy victory. The visitors shot 53.2 percent overall and forced 18 turnovers while committing only nine.

Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 26 points, supplementing them with eight rebounds, one assist, two steals and one block. Jimmy Butler totaled 18 points, seven assists and three rebounds. Gabe Vincent and Max Strus posted matching 16-point tallies, with Vincent adding five rebounds and Strus dishing out 10 assists. Tyler Herro furnished 14 points, seven assists, four boards and two steals. Caleb Martin and Orlando Robinson generated matching 10-point contributions while recording three and four rebounds, respectively.

CJ McCollum paced the Pelicans with 21 points, supplementing them with four assists, two rebounds, one steal and one block. Jonas Valanciunas produced an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double. Naji Marshall delivered 12 points, five boards and four assists. Jose Alvarado netted 11 points.

The Heat remains on the road and visits the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night, while the Pelicans visit the Orlando Magic on Friday night as well.