30,000 Ornaments. 15,000 Lights. One Very Tall Christmas Tree Shining Bright In Florida.

MIAMI — Observations and other notes of interest from Thursday night’s 125-96 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks: – As with so many things Heat these days, there was a game Thursday night . . . and plenty more. – Such as Bucks coach Doc Rivers offering his take on Jimmy Butler’s standoff with the Heat, asked pregame if he was surprised by how it is playing out, with Butler amid another suspension. – “I don’t know if I’m surprised or not,” Rivers said.

MIAMI – Two distinct varieties of drama were on display Thursday night at Fiserv Forum. For the Miami Heat, it was a stupor-like daze in the wake of yet another Jimmy Butler suspension, personified by the end of the first half in the 125-96 loss, the team’s fifth in their last six games. For the Milwaukee Bucks, it was playoff-level perseverance on a day they could not depart New Orleans until mid-afternoon as that city recovered from a freak winter storm. No single sequence better personified the difference in direction than the close of the first half, when Bucks guard Damian Lillard scored six points in the final 1.1 seconds of the second quarter. (Yes, you read that right.) With those 1.1 seconds remaining in the first half, Lillard was fouled on a 3-point attempt by Heat guard Duncan Robinson, converting all three free throws. Then, with Heat rookie center Kel’el Ware unable to inbound, the Bucks regained possession with those 1.1 seconds still remaining, enough for Lillard to beat the halftime buzzer with a 3-pointer. “That’s a teaching moment,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

In the aftermath of two recent crashes that killed Road Rangers on the side of Florida’s highways, state officials are again urging drivers to follow the state’s “Move Over” law, which requires them to move one lane over or slow down when passing a first responder or disabled vehicle. Florida Highway Patrol and Florida Department of Transportation officials, Road Rangers and police officers came together for a Thursday news conference at the Davie headquarters to highlight the importance of the law and the consequences of violating it.

By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Active duty military troops will begin arriving in El Paso, Texas, and San Diego on Thursday evening, in what defense officials said is the first batch of the new forces being deployed to secure the southern border. The Pentagon announced on Wednesday that about 1,500 troops were being sent to the border this week, as the department scrambles to put in motion President Donald Trump’s executive order demanding an immediate crackdown on immigration. U.

By CARLA K. JOHNSON A new study suggests that a pill used for emergency contraception could be repurposed at a higher dose as an abortion drug, providing a possible alternative to mifepristone, one of the two drugs used in the most common type of abortion in the United States. Related Articles Health | Maternal death reviews get political as state officials intrude Health | Keeping blood pressure under control is critical.

Marvin Jean-Pierre genuinely thought Jose Mondelus was about to rape him on Dec. 29, 2020, and he didn’t have to wait for the violence to start before defending himself, a defense lawyer argued Thursday. Jean-Pierre, 26, took the stand Thursday to give his first account of Mondelus’ death since the body was discovered on New Year’s Day 2021.