The Boston Celtics tasted a sweet victory of 102-82 against the Miami Heat in the fourth game of the Eastern Conference Final. The series is now tied for both sides, with Game 5 scheduled for this Wednesday at 8:30 pm ET in Miami.
The Miami Heat gained a slow start after missing their first 14 shots, scoring only a few points in the game’s first nine minutes. No moment happened where they took the lead against the Boston Celtics, driving their loss to the end.
Jayson Tatum carried the Boston Celtics through his 31 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. Everything appeared to be the same as in the third game, where Miami Heat maintained the lead by 21 points in the first quarter and 26 points by halftime. However, the Miami Heat lacked the will to bounce back in the fourth game, handing the edge over to the Boston Celtics.
Derrick White gave the Boston Celtics a lead with his first seven points to take the team to 18-1. Replacing Marcus Smart, who had a right ankle sprain, worked for the team as it got its early acceleration towards the win. Jayson Tatum nearly outscored the entire team. He scored 12 points in both the quarters before halftime to give the Boston Celtics a lead of 57 against 33 of the Miami Heat. The opening quarter went for the Boston Celtics with 29-11 on the scoreboard.
The Miami Heat got saved from the embarrassment after Victor Oladipo pulled up his socks to score 13 points out of the Miami Heat’s first 18 points. The trend continued even when the Miami Heat took the tally to 28 with Victor Oladipo’s contribution of 18 points. Victor’s team brought the total to 15 points on 18/25/33 shooting splits through two quarters.
Robert Williams returned in Game 4 for the Boston Celtics. He helped the team secure the defensive floor, allowing the Miami Heat to score only 14 from their 45 attempts.
Losing two major players went against the Miami Heat, and Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler rarely could contribute after the team failed to give a stronger fight. Their combined score came to only 15 points, which was fairly lower than expected from them.
Jimmy Butler left the floor, joined by Kyle Lowry. Both of them did not play the final 16 minutes of the game. It did not stop the Boston Celtics as they went on to take a lead of 31 points. The absence of Tyler Herro due to a left groin injury only added salt to the loss.
Game 3 indicated that Game 4 could go differently. The Miami Heat were 39 against 14 of the Boston Celtics in the third quarter and 39 against 18 in the first quarter of Game 3. If it was not for the Boston Celtics working on their mistakes, the Miami Heat could have had the game dining with them.
