The Celtics looked to keep winning and distance themselves from recent frustrating close losses this Sunday. And the Miami Heat have shown notable weaknesses against Boston’s lineup. Perfect opportunity for another Boston victory, and despite serious slippage in the third quarter and officiating foolishness in the fourth that got Isaiah Thomas ejected, the Cs triumphed over the reeling Heat.
THE GAME FLOW
It didn’t take long for the Celtics to assert themselves offensively, jumping out to a double-digit lead about halfway through the first quarter and nearly 20 ahead by Q1’s end, thanks to hot starts by Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley. The Heat didn’t help themselves by turning the ball over 7 times in that frame, all due to steals (including two fairly brutal pocket-pickings by Al Horford).
Boston exerted more pressure defensively than they have in numerous recent games, but aside from the driving force of Goran Dragic and the fast-food stats of Hassan Whiteside, Miami frankly looked hesitant and shook on the offensive end for much of the first half. As for that Heat defense, well, I think it got a too drunk last night and tried to play through a hangover. More often than not the Celtics scored at will. At one point Amir Johnson had enough spacing and time to nail a 3. That is, uh, not a frequent basketball occurrence, and it’s indicative of how lost Miami often appeared in this contest.
Things weren’t nearly as simple in the second half. The Celtics came into Q3 with considerably less intensity than they’d had at the game’s start, shooting under 30 percent for the frame, with everyone but Bradley and Isaiah going ice cold, and the Heat took advantage. Whiteside and Dragic continued to score efficiently, and the team’s young bucks–Tyler Johnson, Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow–greatly helped the team’s playmaking and D as Boston got exasperatingly careless with the ball.
Some balance returned in the fourth quarter, with Horford’s versatility helping out in key moments–through crisp passing, offensive rebounds and defense-eluding post buckets. And then The Elbow Bullshit happened (see below), Isaiah got booted and Miami went on a run to bring the game within single digits. Fortunately, Horford was not of a mind to let the game slip away and scored key points in the final minutes to seal the W, 105-95.
I figured I’d just be complaining about the Celtics’ lackadaisical third-quarter play here, but…seriously, fuck this flagrant-2 call. Where’s the intent?
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Flagrant one would’ve been appropriate–Isaiah has to take some responsibility for a careless elbow move. But no way was he aiming to bust Justise Winslow in the nose.
Well. I really wanted to go with the rock-paper-scissors vine, but will just hyperlink it and instead highlight some of Horford’s excellent work in the fourth to seal the win, namely this 3-point play:
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Man, what a gorgeous pass from I.T. to Jae Crowder for a wide-open three.
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Isaiah Thomas: 23-2-4 plus a steal for the Little Guy, on 60 percent shooting. (If he gets a fine attached to that flagrant-2 call, I’m gonna be pissed.)
Al Horford: 17 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists (leading the team!) with two steals and a block perfectly showcases the all-around impact Horford brings to this Celtics squad.
Goran Dragic: Gotta show some love for the opposition here with a line like this–31 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. (Also 5 turnovers. Thanks, Goran.)
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