Goading Jimmy Butler is not a good idea. Grant Williams’ goal in the final quarter of Friday’s game appeared to be to knock the Miami Heat star off center. He scored a triple and faced it. On the next attack, Butler returned the basket (with an extra shot) and they faced off again. In another two consecutive attacks, he again beat Williams, who ended up on the bench. From kickoff, the Heat put up a 9-24 streak, winning the game and taking a big step forward in the Eastern Conference Finals, leading 2-0.
The Miami Heat have never lost in a series where they started out by winning their first two games. This time they also have the edge at home. The duel now goes to Miami, where Game 3 and Game 4 will be played on Sunday and Tuesday. The Celtics haven’t reversed that situation since 1969, but last year they got their crucial wins in the Heat arena.
Butler was again the star of his team with 27 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals. His influence on the game is crucial beyond the numbers. With him on the court, the Heat are poised to overcome any adversity.
This Friday they were 12 points down (89-77) in the last quarter, but the Celtics still couldn’t prevail. “We never give up. We love each other. “We trust each other,” Butler replied on television at the end of the game on the pitch.
Bam Adebayo’s party is not far behind. With 22 points, 16 rebounds and 9 assists, he is the champion under the basket. Caleb Martin, who started the game on the bench, scored 25 points, very much inspired by the 3-point line.
For the Celtics, with 34 points, 13 rebounds and 8 assists, it’s hard to say that Jayson Tatum was bad. And yet, in the moment of truth, he has failed to tip the game in his favor. In the last quarter he failed again, as in the first game. Jaylen Brown was again slightly below his level with 16 points and the Dominican after Horford could never stand up to Adebayo with only 2 points and 4 rebounds.
At times the Celtics gritted their teeth on defense and were able to stop Butler and his team. In the first quarter they managed to turn the score around, which ended in 25:24. Miami prevailed 25-30 in the second quarter and went into halftime with a 4-point lead, but the Celtics took full advantage of that again in the third quarter, posting a 33-21 run that put them by a margin in the pivotal moment went 83-75 in his favor.
However, the Miami Heat specialize in winning streaks and turning around seemingly lost games. Led by Jimmy Playoff Butler, they put up a 22-36 run in the fourth quarter, especially as Williams got the idea to go head-to-head with the player converting in the playoffs.
The Boston Celtics were second in the regular season while the Miami Heat were eighth in the Eastern Conference and qualified for the playoffs at the last moment, but then surprised Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks, favorites for the title, and knocked them out in the knocked out the first round. Later he reported relatively relaxed about the New York Knicks.
Now the Milwaukee Bucks’ henchmen are plotting revenge for last year’s East Finals, which they lost to the Celtics in the last game. In the event of a win, the winner of the duel between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets hits the ring in which the latter have won their first two home games. This Saturday the duel in Los Angeles continues.
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