Celtics Blast Heat, 116-99
The Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat, 116-99, at Kaseya Center on Tuesday night in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Finals series. The Heat leads the series, 3-1.
The Celtics (1-3) were down to their last out for the second consecutive postseason round, and just as was the case versus the 76ers in the conference semifinals, Boston responded with a victory in enemy territory. However, the first half, which did see Boston enjoy sporadic leads, ended with Joe Mazzulla's club down by six points to the Heat (3-1) at intermission. Nevertheless, the visitors were able to save their season thanks largely to a dominant third quarter during which they outscored Miami, 38-23. Just as important, the defending Eastern Conference champions wouldn't take their foot off the gas in the fourth quarter, with a 12-0 run midway through the period after the hosts had closed to within five critical to the win.
Jayson Tatum led the way with 33 points, adding 11 rebounds, seven assists, two blocks and one steal. Jaylen Brown furnished 17 points, four boards, four assists and two steals. Derrick White supplied 16 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. Grant Williams delivered 14 points, six boards, two assists, one steal and one block. Al Horford registered 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists and one block. Marcus Smart posted 11 points, six assists, three rebounds and two steals.
Jimmy Butler paced the Heat with 29 points, supplementing them with nine rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. Gabe Vincent registered 17 points, four assists and one rebound. Caleb Martin managed 16 points, four rebounds, one assist and one block. Bam Adebayo provided 10 points, five boards and one steal.
The series shifts back to TD Garden for Game 5, which will unfold Thursday night.
The Celtics (1-3) were down to their last out for the second consecutive postseason round, and just as was the case versus the 76ers in the conference semifinals, Boston responded with a victory in enemy territory. However, the first half, which did see Boston enjoy sporadic leads, ended with Joe Mazzulla's club down by six points to the Heat (3-1) at intermission. Nevertheless, the visitors were able to save their season thanks largely to a dominant third quarter during which they outscored Miami, 38-23. Just as important, the defending Eastern Conference champions wouldn't take their foot off the gas in the fourth quarter, with a 12-0 run midway through the period after the hosts had closed to within five critical to the win.
Jayson Tatum led the way with 33 points, adding 11 rebounds, seven assists, two blocks and one steal. Jaylen Brown furnished 17 points, four boards, four assists and two steals. Derrick White supplied 16 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. Grant Williams delivered 14 points, six boards, two assists, one steal and one block. Al Horford registered 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists and one block. Marcus Smart posted 11 points, six assists, three rebounds and two steals.
Jimmy Butler paced the Heat with 29 points, supplementing them with nine rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. Gabe Vincent registered 17 points, four assists and one rebound. Caleb Martin managed 16 points, four rebounds, one assist and one block. Bam Adebayo provided 10 points, five boards and one steal.
The series shifts back to TD Garden for Game 5, which will unfold Thursday night.