NBA Playoffs: Heat defeat Celtics to even the series after Herro scores 24.
Wednesday evening saw the Miami Heat leveling the playing field in their opening playoff series against the Boston Celtics, clinching a 111-101 victory.Tyler Herro led the Heat’s offensive assault, showcasing his skills with 24 points and 14 assists, including a remarkable six three-pointers, helping Miami set a franchise playoff record with 23 points.
Bam Adebayo contributed 21 pointd 10 rebounds, while newcomer Celtics nemesis Caleb Martin also scored 21 points for the Heat, shooting an impressive 53.5% (23 out of 43) from beyond the arc, breaking Miami’s playoff record of “ “During the opening matches of 2021, an astonishing barrage of 20 three-point shots rained down upon the Bucks.
Jalen Brown scored 33 points for the top-seeded Boston. Jayson Tatum added 28 points, unaffected by Martin’s intense defense, who was benched for nearly a minute in Sunday’s 114-94 win for Boston. The series will move to Miami for games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday.
Although the Celtics claimed home-court advantage in the regular season by winning 64 games through the NBA Finals, they failed to capitalize on it on Wednesday. They still looked encouraged seeing their star putting in the effort.
“On Sunday, Tatum achieved a remarkable milestone with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, marking his inaugural playoff triple-double and spearheading Boston’s astonishing 34-point resurgence in the fourth The pivotal moment arrived when they faced Martin’s relentless physicality beneath the rim, leaving them pondering their strategy for recovery.
Tatum started Game 2 with 14 points in the first quarter. Whenever Martin touched the ball, he was intensely challenged. It seemed like it was not only frustrating him but also fueling the Heat, who needed to win the play-in game against the Celtics to earn the right to face them in the series.
After Brown sank three consecutive three-pointers to take a four-point lead, Miami led by five points, 55-50, with two minutes remaining in the first half. Brown missed his subsequent shot, but his final-second basket made the halftime advantage 61-58.
Miami built a 12-point lead, 82-70, with four minutes left to play in the third game. Boston cut it to six, 102-96, with three minutes remaining, but Martin hit a three, and the Celtics never managed to get within two possessions again.