an irrepressible Jayson Tatumwith 31 points, eight rebounds and five assists in 33 minutes, led a tremendous team performance this Monday by the Boston Celticswhich passed over the Miami Heat (102-82) at the TD Garden and tied the Eastern Conference finals 2-2.
Tatum went from the ten points scored 48 hours earlier in the resounding 127-102 setback against the Heat to light up the Garden with spectacular plays, on a night in which the Celtics showed all their power on both sides of the track, despite the loss of Marcus Smart, who had finished the third game with severe ankle pain.
Ime Udoka’s team, who is making history as a debut coach in the NBA, was also able to count on an outstanding performance by Dominican Al Horford, who dominated in the paint, with five points, thirteen rebounds and four key shots to completely deactivate the Heats.
Five Celtics players finished in double figures against a Heat that paid for the loss of Tyler Herro, best sixth man of the season, and the improvable physical condition of leaders like Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry.
Butler scored six points in 27 minutes and Lowry just three in 21 minutes. It was Victor Oladipo, who is recovering continuity after recent seasons weighed down by injuries, the Heat’s leading scorer with 23 points, four rebounds and six assists.
The Heat’s starting five, made up of Butler, Lowry, Adebayo, Max Strus and PJ Tucker, only scored 18 points, which is the worst mark in the ‘playoffs’ since the 1970-1971 season.
MIAMI, 0 OF 14 IN FIELD SHOTS TO START
The Celtics bit from the first second, led offensively by a Tatum who already had twelve points, five rebounds and two assists after the first period, in which the Heat needed fifteen attempts to get their first points from the field (1 of 15).
The first point came from the free throw line, the work of Bam Adebayo, while it was Oladipo, coming off the bench, who connected the first field goal, after almost nine minutes of the game.
A dominance of points, rebounds (19-8), determination in divided balls that did not satisfy the hunger of the Celtics, who continued to step on the accelerator and crushed some Heat in which only Victor Oladipo, with 18 points, managed Break consecutive miss streaks.
TATUM, 24 POINTS AT BREAK
The Celtics also fouled Erik Spoelstra’s men and threw 26 free kicks in the first half to build a 57-33 lead at halftime, with another twelve points from a Tatum who was already close to a double-double (24 points and 8 bounces).
The advantage of Ime Udoka’s men, with another seven points from Tatum and a Horford who cleaned the paint with five rebounds and two shots, reached 32 points in the third quarter and the Heat could not raise their heads, despite cutting the margin at times up to 23 points.
HORFORD, FOURTH STRIKE AND CURRY
The 76-52 with which the Celtics entered the last period and the opening triples by Payton Pritchard and Al Horford fired at those of Udoka and frustrated all kinds of hopes of a comeback for the Heat, in which several protagonists, such as Tucker or Butler stayed on the bench reflecting and thinking about the fifth game.
The last minutes became a party in the Garden, with Horford sealing a tremendous block to Gabe Vincent and Pritchard signing the 88-57 that put more than thirty points in between, with eight minutes to play.
“He is an unbeatable leader,” said Jayson Tatum at the end of the game to celebrate Horford’s performance, one of the great assets of the Celtics, who will visit the Heat this Thursday for the fifth game, with a tie at two and all for decide.
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