![]() ![]() It won't be long before one of the teams is headed to the Finals and the other is headed back home in defeat. That's becoming something of a trend for the Celtics they were averaging 37.8% three-point shooting accuracy earlier this season, but in their last five matchups they've fallen to only 31.2%. He's posted a double-double in each of his last five games.Įven though they won, the Celtics couldn't hit a thing from beyond the arc in the victory and finished the game having only made 20% of their threes. They relied on the efforts of Jayson Tatum, who dropped a double-double on 31 points and 12 rebounds, and Jaylen Brown, who dropped a double-double on 26 points and 10 rebounds. The victory was nothing new for the Celtics as they're now sitting on three straight. On Saturday, Boston skirted by Miami 104-103 on a last-minute layup from Derrick White with less than a second left in the fourth quarter. On top of being even in the series, the Celtics and the Heat are at an even 5-5 over their past ten head to heads. On Monday, the Boston Celtics will fight it out against the Miami Heat in an Eastern Conference playoff contest at 8:30 p.m. Where: TD Garden - Boston, Massachusetts.Game 1 of the Finals is scheduled for Thursday in Denver.Regular Season Records: Miami 44-38, Boston 57-25Current Series Standings: Boston 3, Miami 3 How To Watch You can bet Denver is taking these guys serious, and it looks like they'll have another player to deal with in Tyler Herro, who is reportedly ramping up his workload and could potentially return by Game 3 of the Finals. Martin, Vincent and Strus are serious players, and Robinson is still one of the deadliest shooters in the league when he is confident and in rhythm. By the time they all get their next contract we could very well be looking at north of a quarter billion in cumulative NBA money between these guys. There's an instinct to continue think of these guys as afterthought grinders, but that is a big mistake at this point. ![]() Want some Heat culture? Miami got 56 points from its undrafted players, the exact amount they averaged over the course of the series: Martin (26), Gabe Vincent (10), Duncan Robinson (10), Max Strus (8), Haywood Highsmith (2). "We don't play just to win the Eastern Conference, we play to win the whole thing," Butler said, just in case you thought Miami was just happy to be in the Finals. Jimmy Butler, who guaranteed a Game 7 victory even after pretty much everyone had written Miami off in the wake of their three-game losing streak, was terrific with his typical controlled aggression, finishing with 28 points, including three 3-pointers, to go with seven rebounds, six assists and three steals against just one turnover.īutler was named ECF MVP in a tight vote over Martin. They shot the lights out (50% from 3), particularly Caleb Martin, who was brilliant all series and finished with 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting including 4 of 6 from deep. They didn't force anything, but they were assertive. Meanwhile, Miami looked like the team unfazed by the Game 7 pressure. They are just the fourth of those 151 teams to even do that much after going down 3-0, but they couldn't get over the hump as Jayson Tatum rolled his ankle early and clearly wasn't right the whole night, Jaylen Brown (eight turnovers, 8-of-23 shooting) was awful, and Boston's 3-point shooting (21%), yet again, was atrocious. "… Sometimes you have to suffer for the things you really want."Ĭredit the Celtics for fighting back to force a Game 7. "I think a lot of people can relate to this team," Eric Spoelstra said. It didn't look good after the way Game 6 was ripped from their hands with a miraculous Derrick White buzzer-beating tip-in. Teams that go up 3-0 are now 151-0 all-time. With the win, Miami avoids the dubious distinction of being the first team in NBA history to blow a 3-0 lead in a playoff series. The Miami Heat are marching on to the NBA Finals, where they will face the Denver Nuggets, after a 103-84 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals on Monday.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |