NBA Scores: Celtics beat Miami once more, transfer one step nearer to NBA historical past

Celtics fend off Heat at dwelling, 110-97, power Game 6 in Miami

Thursday night time marked the fourth time the Boston Celtics have confronted and elimination situation this postseason. Given that they’re nonetheless alive right now, I’ll offer you one guess as to what their document is in these video games.

On Wednesday night time, the Celtics took one small step nearer to historical past, beating the Heat in dominant vogue on their dwelling ground to ship the collection again to Miami for Game 6. The Heat, given their commanding begin to the collection, nonetheless personal a 3-2 benefit, and now have an opportunity to shut out the collection at dwelling. Teams that begin a collection with a 3-0 benefit are 150-0, in spite of everything. A detailed-out alternative at dwelling feels virtually storybook.

Then once more, so did the sweep that seemed and felt inevitable after Game 3’s debacle of a efficiency from the Celtics, one which put them in a 3-0 gap. But instantly, Boston has gained two video games in a row to make this a collection, and has seemed dominant doing it. They gained by 17 in Game 4 on Miami’s dwelling ground, after which promptly took the Heat to process with a deceptive 13-point win in Boston. (It ought to have been an even bigger blowout, however rubbish time is known as rubbish time for a purpose.)

Derrick White had 24 factors, together with six 3-pointers, to prepared the ground for the Celtics. Marcus Smart (23 factors and 5 steals), Jayson Tatum (21 factors, eight rebounds, and 11 assists), and Jaylen Brown (21 of his personal) all completed in double-figures to steer the cost. Boston by no means trailed, pressured 16 Miami turnovers, and knocked down 41 p.c of their threes. That’s actually all it’s essential to know.

Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Duncan Robinson (!!!) led the Heat with 18 factors, whereas Bam Adebayo added 16 factors and eight rebounds. Jimmy Butler had a meager 14 factors, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, although he sat for a lot of the fourth. Haywood Highsmith — getting the 36 minutes that Gabe Vincent left vacant as he sat out with an ankle sprain — scored 15 factors off the bench in his first actual motion this postseason.

Game 6 is on Saturday in Miami, the place the Heat will look to turn out to be the second eight seed to make the NBA Finals. Boston, in the meantime, will look to power a Game 7, one that may give them the uncommon alternative to make historical past. If any crew goes to do it, it would as effectively be this infuriating group.

As Kevin Millar stated about his Boston Red Sox crew approach again in 2004, “Don’t count us out.” As Curt Schilling famously famous about the identical crew, “Why not us?”