Miami Heat own second half to cruise to a game 1 victory over the Boston Celtics – NBA East Finals Recap
The Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics in game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to take a 1-0 lead, here at the American Airlines Arena.
It was a rematch from last year’s Eastern Conference Semi Finals where the Heat defeated the Celtics in five games. In the game on Monday night, the Celtics were in the game up till the 2nd quarter, but the Heat turned
the table in the third period and the Celtics never got an opportunity to come back in the game after that.
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade were at their usual best, scoring a combined 54 points and going 21 of 35 from the field. They have now scored a total of 251 Miami points in the last 4 games, going back to the series against the Indiana
Pacers.
James was the MVP for the game, scoring 32 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Kevin Garnett had 23 points and 10 rebounds for the Celtics, but did not get any support from any of the other team members.
The Boston Celtics were 5 of 20 from the field in the first period and turned the ball over 4 times, all by Rondo, to score only 11 points in the first period. Miami had 21 to lead the Celtics 21-11 at the close of the first period.
The Celtics came out charged up in the 2nd period and quickly got down to business. They improved their shooting performance from the field and took better care of the ball as well. The Greens shot 13 of 22 from the
field in the 2nd quarter, a significant improvement from their 25% shooting performance in the first period. In addition to that, the only turnover they committed in the 2nd quarter was an offensive foul by Kevin Garnett, after committing
4 in the first quarter.
The Heat stayed ahead of the Celtics for the first few minutes of the period but could not match the Celtics scoring pace and eventually, the Celtics ran away with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 43 with 2:02 remaining in the half.
They could have had a 10-0 run if Ray Allen had not missed 2 of his 3 free throws after he was fouled by Mike Miller while attempting a three point shot at the 3:44 mark. Miami then went ahead of the Celtics with a jump shot by
Shane Battier followed by a free throw by Joel Anthony.
But, the Celtics replied with a three pointer by Paul Pierce with 19 seconds left in the half. The C’s bench all rose up in celebration as both teams went into half time tied at 46.
Like we saw so many times in the series against the Indiana Pacers, the third quarter once again belonged to the Miami Heat. They came out with a renewed game plan, and contained Garnett while making the other important players
of the Celtics insignificant.
The Heat had small runs throughout the quarter, which enabled them to build a double digit lead by the end of the period. They had a 9-4 run in the early half of the quarter, and ended off with a 6-3 run. The Celtics continued
their shooting worries, going 1 of 9 to start the 2nd half and 6 of 22 from the field in the whole third period. Miami led 72-61 going into the final 12 minutes of the game.
The Heat continued their 2nd half dominance in the final period, opening it with a 6-0 run to extend their lead to 78-61. The Celtics could not swallow the deficit and trailed by double digits the rest of the game to
lose 93-79 at the end.
James and Wade were once again supreme for Miami with 54 combined points, but the role players also did their job which helped the Heat to the comfortable victory.
Shane Battier had 10 points and 10 rebounds while Mario Chalmers had 9 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Mike Miller also added 8 points from the bench.
Kevin Garnett led the scoring for the Celtics with 23 points and 10 rebounds, going 9 of 16 from the field. Rajon Rondo had 16 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists but was 8 of 20 from the field and committed 4 turnovers, all in the
first period. Paul Pierce struggled on the night, going 5 of 18 from the field to score 12 points. Ray Allen was 1 of 7 from the field for 6 points and Brandon Bass had 8 points and only 2 rebounds.
The Celtics shot 39.5% from the field and 28.6% from the distance. In comparison, the Heat were 50% from the field and 20% from the distance.
Both teams struggled from the foul line on the night, with the Heat going 16 of 23 and the Celtics 11 of 21. Boston were outnumbered 48-33 in rebounds and 11-1 in blocks.
The Celtics will go back to the drawing boards after the loss. They have a day off before they face the Heat on Wednesday night for game 2 at the American Airlines Arena.
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