Heat Score vs. Celtics takeaways: Jimmy Butler drops 41 points as Miami walks away in Game 1 win

The Miami Heat posted a 118-107 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the 2022 Eastern Conference finals on Tuesday night. It was a tale of two halves for the Heat, who came alive in the third quarter to rally from eight points down at halftime and proceed to dominate the Celtics for the rest of the game. Jimmy Butler had 41 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the win, while Tyler Herro had 18 points off the bench for the Heat.

Miami increased the pressure on the defense in the second half and made life difficult for Jayson Tatum and Boston. Tatum finished the game with 29 points (21 in the first half), while Jaylen Brown added 24 points. Boston certainly missed Marcus Smart (out with a foot injury) and Al Horford (out under COVID health and safety protocols) at both ends of the floor, and while Horford could miss Game 2 in the protocols of the league, there is optimism that Smart could return for the Game. 2 for that sprained right foot.

Here are three takeaways from Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals between the Heat and Celtics.

1. Jimmy got buckets

Butler was unstoppable throughout the game, but he really came alive in the second half, where he scored 27 of his 41 points on the night. He did a lot of his damage at the free throw line, where he racked up 17 points, as he excelled at provoking several defenders with his bomb feint to draw a foul. But it wasn’t just Butler’s scoring that made the difference for the Heat, he did it with his playmaking, rebounding and perhaps most importantly, his defense.

Butler finished the game with four steals, three of which came in the third quarter. There was a moment in that quarter when Butler came out with back-to-back steals that led to easy quick buckets, extending Miami’s lead and leaving the Celtics in shock after putting up a terrific first-half performance. Butler also finished with three blocks, the last of which felt like a statement, as he finished off Tatum on a corner 3-point attempt late in the fourth quarter.

On the possession before that, Butler threw a mid-range jumper over Celtics guard Payton Pritchard while staring at him as he ran defensively, as if to say “you can’t defend me.” The right hand from Butler, Pritchard and everyone else Boston tried to hit him with couldn’t contain it and resulted in an explosive performance from the Heat forward, who has now scored 40 or more points three times in these playoffs.

2. Boston collapsed in the third quarter

Things really fell apart for the Celtics in the third quarter, as they were outscored 39-14 at halftime after leading by eight points after 24 minutes. Boston dominated the game for two quarters, as Tatum worked up 21 points in the first half, the Celtics generated 42 points in the paint and racked up 17 assists, showing great ball movement to start the game. But all that first-half success flew out the window, and the Heat not only closed the gap in the third quarter, they completely crushed them and built a 20-point lead.

Give credit to Miami’s defense, as the Heat stifled Tatum and shut down Boston’s offense practically as soon as he got past half court, but some of that also had to do with the Celtics’ mental mistakes. Tatum racked up six turnovers in the third quarter as he walked away from what worked for him during the first half and began to rely on foul hunting to get the points from him. He resulted in just five points from the superstar striker, who struggled to find his shot again after a strong start to the game.

But you can’t entirely blame Tatum for his performance in the third quarter. For three-quarters of the game, Brown wasn’t a factor, and while he finished the night with 24 points, most of that production came in the fourth quarter when the Heat were already comfortably ahead.

The Celtics can’t afford for Brown to come to life when the game is practically out of his hands, especially when the team is down two starters in Smart and Horford. While Brown had 15 points in the fourth quarter to help set up a comeback attempt, it was too little too late for his heroism. Boston needed that production in the third quarter when Tatum was being swarmed and no one else could generate points. If Brown had a bigger third quarter than just the two points and 0-for-4 from the field he produced, maybe Boston wouldn’t sink down a 20-point deficit and would have had a real chance late in the game.

3. Vincent intervened in Lowry’s absence

One of the biggest stories for the Heat heading into Game 1 was how this team would handle playing against a defense like the Celtics without their starting point guard in Kyle Lowry, who is dealing with a hamstring injury. While Miami had gone 6-0 in the previous games Lowry sat out the playoffs, the team had still faced an opponent as dominant and versatile as the Celtics.

That clearly wasn’t much of a concern, as Gabe Vincent put on an impressive performance and finished the game with 17 points, three assists, three blocks and two rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep. . His performance in the third quarter was one of the reasons the Heat managed to gain such a big lead, as he scored 10 points while playing all 12 minutes of the third quarter.

It’s not entirely surprising to see Vincent make an impact for the Heat, given that he showed some glimpses of it in the second round against the 76ers, but I imagine not many predicted that he would be the second leading scorer among starters for the Heat tonight. . It’s unclear when Lowry will return for the Heat in this series, but in the meantime, Vincent has shown that he can fill in when needed.