The Heat raced out to an 18-2 lead, but Oklahoma City stormed back in the second half and made it a two-point game in the final 10 seconds.
LeBron James, who scored 32 points, made all of his 12 free throws, including the final two with seven seconds left that salted the game away for Miami.
Dwyane Wade finished with 24 points and Chris Bosh celebrated his return to the starting lineup with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Shane Battier made five three-pointers and scored 17 points.
Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 32 points. Russell Westbrook added 27.
The next three games of the series will be played in Miami. Game three will be played Sunday night.
In other state sports news...
- Jupiter's Tiger Woods shot an opening round 69 and is three shots back after the first round of the U.S. Open. Woods trails little-known Micheal Thompson for the lead. Thompson shot a 66. Woods celebrated playing partners had a tough day. Phil Mickelson was 6-over par while Master's champ Bubba Watson finished 8-over-par. Lake Mary's Matt Kuchar, the Players' Championship winner, finished with a 70.
- The Tampa Bay Rays are glad to see the New York Mets leave town. The Mets completed a three-game sweep with a 9-6 win over the Rays Thursday afternoon. Kurt Nieuwenhuis hit a leadoff homer and added a two-run blast as the Mets swept the Rays by a combined 29-9 margin. Jeremy Hellickson got shelled for nine hits and eight runs in three and 1/3 innings.
