Celtics extend series lead to 3-1 on the back of Derrick White, defeating Miami 102-88
On Monday night in Miami the Boston Celtics looked to take a 3-1 series lead over the Miami Heat after a dominant performance in game 3 on Saturday night. Celtics fans were a little nervous after Boston’s ugly performance in game 2 at home. Miami shot the lights out from deep in game 2 but some adjustments from Joe Mazzula in game 3 proved to be pivotal in Boston’s dominant win.
BOSTON, MA – APRIL 21: Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, right, and Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla look on during the second half of game one of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs at TD Garden on April 21, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
First Quarter:
The Miami crowd was dressed for a white out on Monday night in Miami but the first quarter was the Derrick White show. White was everywhere in the first quarter scoring 16 points in 9 minutes jump starting the Celtics offense and keeping the Miami crowd at bay early in this one. Tyler Herro was Miami’s best player in the first quarter as he scored 9 points and had a few key assists to Bam Adebayo to keep the Celtics from running away with it. Boston tried to pull away numerous times in the first led by White’s incredibly hot shooting start but Miami as they always do slowly chipped away and made it a 10 point game 34-24 at the end of the first.
Second Quarter:
The second quarter started with Boston continuing to build on its 10 point lead with a Kristaps Porzingis 3 pointer. It wasn’t the Boston big 3 that was controlling play early in this one, Tatum and Brown struggled shooting and handling the ball in the first half as Miami did what they do. Mucking up the game and trying to cool down Derrick White and the Celtics high powered offense. Miami would continue to try and slow the game down but Boston was able to hold the lead at ten for most of the quarter leading 39-29 with 6:49 to go in the half.
As Sean Grande said on the Celtics radio network ” The White out would continue” in the second quarter with White hitting back to back 3’s to bring his total up to 22 points and Boston’s lead to 16, 47-31 with 4 minutes to go in the half. While Tatum, Brown and Porzingis had only 16 points in the half at the 4 minute mark of the second. Another major part of Boston’s early lead was Miami’s struggles from 3 the Heat were 2/13 from 3 with 3 minutes left in the half. A stark difference from their unreal shooting performance in game 2.
Everything would change though as Kristaps Porzingis came up lame with 2 minutes to go in the half and gingerly walked back to the locker room with his hands on his head. A very scary sight for Celtics fans that know how important Porzingis is to their hopeful title run. Boston would hold onto a 17 point lead heading into the half but the only thing on Celtics fans mind at this point was the health of Kristaps Porzingis.
Third Quarter:
The Celtics came out of half knowing they’d most likely be without Kristaps Porzingis in this one as Chris Haynes reported he had right calf tightness and was doubtful to return. However it didn’t seem to be in their heads as they came out firing to start the half extending the lead to 17, 58-41 with 7:38 to go in the third. Derrick White would continue to light the Heat up in the second half getting him up to 29 points on 11/18 shooting extending Boston’s lead to 24, 69-45 with 4 minutes to go in the third quarter. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown started to find their offensive game in the second half helping to push Boston’s lead to 25 for most of the third. Miami would end the quarter on a small run cutting it to 81-59 at the end of the third quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
Boston headed into the final frame with a healthy lead looking to hold off Miami and extend their series lead to 3-1 heading back to Boston. The fourth would be a little chippier than the first 3 quarters as Miami was feeling the pressure of going down 3-1. Miami would cut Boston’s lead to under 20 a couple times gaining momentum at the 8 minute mark cutting Boston’s lead to 15. A massive Jrue Holiday 3 pointer and Jayson Tatum dunk would push Boston’s lead back up though to 91-71 with 7 minutes to go in the game and Boston’s 3-1 series was looking to be all but wrapped up.
However an all but too familiar sight for Celtics fans as the lead slowly started to fade as Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro would not go quietly cutting Boston’s lead down to 13, 91-78 with 5:21 let in the game. Another scary moment for Celtics fans happened at the 5:04 mark as Bam Adebayo made a careless contest on a Jayson Tatum jump shot after the whistle had already blown for a foul on Patty Mills. Adebayo undercut Tatum after the whistle causing Tatum to land on his foot and roll his ankle after the whistle had already been blown. Boston wouldn’t let that derail them though as Tatum stayed in the game and Adebayo was assessed a flagrant one for hitting Tatum after the whistle. Boston would keep Miami at bay for the rest of the quarter and Derrick White’s 8th 3 of the night would be the final dagger to extend Boston’s lead to 102-85 with 50 seconds left to seal the win for the Celtics.
Boston would go on to win game 4 102-88 but not without taking some serious lumps in the process. The injury to Kristaps Porzingis and the late ankle roll by Tatum landing on Bam Adebayo’s foot will be in the back of their heads, but the team showed resilience and showed they can still win without Porzingis. How much will it impact the series going forward is still up in the air but for now Boston has a 3-1 series lead and is headed back to Boston with the chance to close out the series on Wednesday night.
