Final: Heat 111, Celtics 95 -- C's can't recover after no-show second quarter

The Celtics' four-game winning streak came to an ugly halt on Thursday night in Miami. After coming out red-hot from the field (6-of-7) in the opening few minutes of the contest, Boston's No. 1 ranked offense reverted to old ugly habits that produced limited ball movement (20 assists) and ugly shooting percentages (40 percent from field). Miami found their rhythm from the perimeter against a lackluster effort from Boston on the defensive end as well, leading by as many as 26 points on their way to a 111-95 win.

Kyrie Irving had a game-high 22 points and Marcus Smart scored all 18 of his points in the second half, but the Heat were the more balanced scoring attack all night with nine players scoring eight points or more. Dwyane Wade had 18 points off the bench, including several key baskets to stop the C's second half run as Boston got no closer than eight points after pulling off a 21-3 second half run.

The Celtics will try to regroup over the next 48 hours while trying to get back on track against the Magic on Saturday night in Orlando. 

First Half Notes 

• C’s come out red hot from the field, hitting jump shots everywhere against a soft Heat defense.


• Marcus Morris makes his first two 3s of the game to get up to 45 percent from downtown. That’s fifth overall in the league.


• Not a lot of resistance defensively from Boston early, as Heat flowing into the shots they want as well. A couple lucky makes (McGruder banked 3) but also some open looks from 3.


• Bad shots from Tatum in the halfcourt, with lack of ball movement that helped sidetracked the C’s hot offense early


• Hayward’s midrange game is looking smoother early on. Some ugly possessions from Rozier/Brown off the bench.


• Just six points in the final five minutes of the quarter as the C’s get far too jump shot happy with the wrong guys taking them (Rozier, Brown)


• Kyrie gets dunked on midway through the first quarter in a poster-like move by James Johnson. Admirable effort by Kyrie but that one will be shown on highlights for awhile


• Offense and ball movement went down the tubes in the second quarter as Irving was the only one hitting jump shots and the C's defense looked lethargic on the second half of a back-to-back. Missed rotations, dumb gambles and just undisciplined basketball against one of the worst offenses in the NBA.


• Heat outscored them 28-12 in the paint in the first half as Irving (17 points) and Morris (10 points) were only two players that had it going. They shot 30 percent from the field over the last 20 minutes of the half.


• Miami get hot from 3 thanks to nice contributions from Winslow, Jones Jr. and Richardson.

• The Celtics have won four straight games overall, all four of which have come by double digits. That's the first time that has occurred since the 2009-10 regular season.


• While the Celtics will be playing the second half of a back-to-back, they have the luxury of coming off a night in which none of the starters played more than 25 minutes after a blowout victory over the Pacers. The Heat have lost two straight games but will be rested after playing on Tuesday night.


• It will be an interesting test of small ball vs traditional big in the matchup as Horford attempts to draw Hassan Whiteside out of the lane. He's shooting 48 percent from 3-point range since returning from his injury, so the guess here is that Whiteside will be played off the floor rather quickly if Horford starts hitting.


• Goran Dragic remains out for the Heat until the All-Star Break with a knee injury, which has the Heat starting an untraditional starting backcourt with Justise Winslow handling point duties.