Everything you need to know about the Celtics beating the Heat 107-99 with BSJ insight and analysis
Box Score
HEADLINES
Celtics win fourth straight behind superb game from starters: The Celtics season turned around when they put together their current starting five and we saw why yet again in Monday’s 107-99 win over the Heat. Four of those starters scored in double figures to lead the way for the hosts, none better than Kyrie Irving (26 points, 10 assists, career-high eight steals) who scored six straight points in the fourth quarter to end a Heat rally and re-assert control in Boston’s fourth-straight win. Al Horford chipped in with his fourth double-double of the season (16 points, 12 rebounds) while Jayson Tatum (19 points) and Marcus Morris (17 points) added terrific shooting nights and solid defense to make up for a lackluster effort by Boston’s bench.
The victory gives Boston nine consecutive wins at the TD Garden, dating back to Dec. 21. The Celtics also pulled within one game of the No. 4 seed, pending the result of the Sixers-Rockets game on Monday night.
Irving continues defensive resurgence: The point guard put himself into the Celtics record books yet again for a surprise reason, tallying a career-high eight steals.
“I felt pretty good,” he said. “I got lucky on a few of them so that helps the stat sheet. I turned the ball over a little too much after I got a few of those steals. Just really excited that I got one. That’s awesome though.”
On a night that the starting unit was particularly stingy on the defensive end for large stretches, Irving was at the forefront of those stops, making smart gambles to get into passing lanes to provide easy scoring opportunities against a tough defensive team.
TURNING POINT
The Celtics opened up the third quarter with a 9-0 run and jumped out to a 32-13 outburst later in the frame as Brad Stevens rode his starters longer than usual to combat a 2-3 zone defense the Heat unveiled. The gamble paid off as Boston doubled up Miami 36-17 in the frame, giving them enough of a cushion in the fourth quarter to hold on for the win.
TWO UP
Irving: The All-Star posted his third double-double of the last four games and also posted a career-high eight steals which helped the Celtics produce 28 points off turnovers. Irving has now scored 25 or more points in each of his last five games and he is also the first Celtic to record 26 points, 10 assists and 8 steals in a game since Larry Bird in 1985.
Al Horford: The big man posted his fourth double-double of the season, setting a new season-high with six offensive rebounds while going an efficient 8-of-11 from the field. He’s now shooting 58 percent from the field during the month of January and has scored 13 points or more in four straight games.
TWO DOWN
Second quarter for Celtics: A horrid performance by the second unit (the bench combined to shoot 2-of-13 in the first half) contributed to a 17-point second quarter. It was a carbon copy of the matchup in Miami a couple weeks ago when Miami’s second unit wiped the floor with Boston. From a head-to-head standpoint, Miami’s bench outscored them 31-8 in the first half to help erase Boston’s early 12-point lead.
Celtics bench: They were miserable in their two stints, despite the fact that Stevens did his best to spot them a big lead in the fourth quarter but a five-man bench unit promptly squandered much of it away, forcing the starters back into the game with five minutes remaining to close the game out. Collectively, the bench was 8-of-26 from the field and no one scored more than seven points, as the offensive games of Hayward, Brown and Rozier all fell flat.
TOP PLAY
Loudest cheer of the game came during this sequence
Good to have you back, Baynes. ? pic.twitter.com/yGShKupwiP
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) January 21, 2019