The Heat are back. After receiving a beating in Game 2, and despite losing Jimmy Butler last night on the road, the Florida team dealt a major blow to Boston by beating them in the Garden by 103-109 to go up 2-1 and show that if you hurt them in their pride, they are even more dangerous.
Because there is a lot of talk regarding Celtics pride, but in the third game it was Miami that jumped onto the court on fire. In the first quarter they destroyed the greens with a final run of 18-39. It was difficult for the Celtics to react, since shortly following the break the scoreboard still reflected a painful (for them) 37-62. The Heat had the point on track, but far from assured. Ime Udoka’s boys closed the first half with a 10-0 run that put them back in the fight, and they did so even more when they saw that Jimmy Butler mightn’t play the second half due to inflammation in his right knee.
It was right at that moment, with the leadership orphan threatening Miami, that Bam Adebayo stepped up. The center, who is not having brilliant playoffs, had a huge game of 31 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals in the moment that was most needed. And it wasn’t just numbers, but he brought calm and success when the night got hotter.
“He did his own version of what Jimmy does regarding ‘doing whatever it takes to win the game.’ Tonight we needed to score and we needed that offensive punch early on. Then when Jimmy was out in the second half, he just gave us stability. It got a little tricky and when he did we were able to pass the ball to Bam and get some consistency”, comments a more than satisfied Erik Spoelstra.
Adebayo held the Heat, but mightn’t keep Boston from coming within a breath of a comeback. Closing the gap little by little, the Greens were placed within a single point with 2:40 minutes to play (92-93) with a triple by Jaylen Brown, who was the beacon of his own with a total of 40 points to which he added 9 rebounds. The atmosphere favored the Celtics, but they quickly cooled down with a triple by Max Strus (16 points in total) and a later basket by Adebayo. Boston would never come close once more.
“We didn’t think that it was suddenly going to be an easy series and that they were going to get carried away. We recovered from the first to the second game and they were going to do the same. We had to match that change, but for some reason we came out flat on the pitch today,” says Ime Udoka, head coach of the Celtics.
24 Boston losses
Ball control made a big difference in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals. The Celtics lost the ball up to 23 times, while Miami did it only eight times. Such a disparity meant that the visitors enjoyed 92 shots at the basket for only 70 of the locals. It was not a good night guarding the ball for the Massachusetts team and an ill-advised Jayson Tatum contributed to it. The forward continues interspersing great games with others in which he is far from the level that is assumed. Last night the monda fell cross and stayed at 10 points with 3 of 14 in field goals, while adding six losses.
“Six turnovers and no baskets in the second half… That’s unacceptable. Honestly, I have to play better. I feel like I left the boys hanging tonight. This is something that depends on me, “says the Boston star.
Return of Lowry
Miami took the enormous joy of victory and also the return of Kyle Lowry. The veteran point guard returned to action following missing four games to play 29 minutes in which he contributed 11 points, 6 assists and 4 steals. He also did his bit PJ Tucker, who was finally able to play to go up to 17 points and 7 rebounds with a 3 of 6 in triples. Who did not find this time on the way to the hoop was Tyler Herro, who had 8 points with a 4 of 15 shot.
While waiting to find out Jimmy Butler’s physical condition and if he has any relevant problem in his right knee, the Heat have taken a very important step to continue dominating the tie. They already know that they have the possibility of making it 3-1 by winning once more in Boston, but that even losing that match they will maintain home court advantage to reach the Finals. The Celtics for their part, as Udoka says, do not despair. They already looked like this once morest Milwaukee, and even 3-2 down, and they got up to win; yes, they need to recover Robert Williams, who is key to stopping Miami and last night he might not play. There are beautiful battles ahead to see who is crowned in the Eastern Conference.
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