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Heat looking to avoid 0-4 start, visit defending champion Spurs

Nov 7, 2007 - 3:41 PM Miami (0-3) at San Antonio (3-1) 8:00 pm EST

SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) -- Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs looked punchless on the road Tuesday. The reigning NBA champions hope a return home the following day will cure their scoring woes.

The Spurs look to bounce back from a tough loss Wednesday when they host the Miami Heat in a battle between the past two NBA champions.

San Antonio managed just 32 first-half points in Tuesday's 89-81 loss to the Houston Rockets - the Spurs' first setback of the season.

Duncan struggled through a rough outing, finishing with 15 points on 5-of-15 shooting while committing five turnovers.

Miami, meanwhile, has lost its last 16 games - including the preseason - dating to last season.

The Heat, who have dropped their first three contests this year, are looking to avoid their worst start since the start of the 2003-04 season, when they began 0-7.

The Heat also rank last in the league in scoring, averaging just 84.3 points per game.

Ricky Davis is averaging 16.0 points per game in his first season with the Heat, while Shaquille O'Neal scored 17 points - his first double-digit game of the season - in Sunday's 90-88 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.

The Spurs and Heat split their two meetings last season, with each winning on their home court.