Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat was a tale of two halves. The short-handed Celtics, who were without Marcus Smart and Al Horford, came out very strongly in the first half.
They led by as many as 13 points and were ahead by eight at halftime, which surprised a lot of people. The Celtics were getting whatever they wanted offensively, which was shocking considering how well the Heat have been playing defense this postseason.
Trae Young and James Harden both experienced first-hand how stifling the Heat defense is, but the Celtics didn’t experience any of that in the first half. However, after halftime, the script was flipped.
“The guys were just really disappointed at halftime,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “I barely needed to say anything. Everybody was just disappointed at our defensive effort and focus. But look, this is a very good team that we’re playing against. So it’s not only us saying that, hey, we have to do that better. They are putting a lot of pressure on our defense, and that’s what you expect when you get to this level.”
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Miami came out like a different team, turning up the pressure defensively. They opened up the third quarter on a 22-2 run, taking control of the game and running away from Boston with their most lopsided playoff quarter in franchise history.
The Heat won the third quarter 39-14, putting away the Celtics and protecting homecourt in Game 1. They would go on to win the game 118-107, as Boston head coach Ime Udoka talked about the change in physicality in the second half being the difference.
“[We] got out-toughed, out-physicaled,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. “They looked like they came out in the second half and wanted to up their physicality and aggression on both ends, and they did that.”
Physicality and how the teams responded to it was one of the keys heading into this series to watch for. In the first half, the Celtics set the tone with how they came out of the gate. But, in the second half, the Heat turned it up and convincingly won the game.
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Jimmy Butler led the way for Miami, continuing his impressive performance in this year’s postseason. He played 41 minutes, scoring 41 points to go along with nine rebounds and five assists, all three of which led the team. 17 of his 41 points came in the dominant third quarter and spoke about the team’s performance after the game.
“More than anything, it just shows us what we are capable of whenever we worry about getting stops, getting into the open floor, getting to the free throw line, all those good things,” said Butler. “It just reminds me, we can do it. I see it on this piece of paper. I lived it. So I expect us to do that every quarter from here on out.”
LATEST NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS COVERAGE: 5 Things To Watch In Boston Celtics vs Miami Heat Eastern Conference Finals
Can the Boston Celtics steal a game before heading back home, or will the Miami Heat take a commanding 2-0 lead, protecting home-court advantage? These teams will be back at it in Game 2 of the series in South Beach on Thursday evening.