Everything you need to know about the Heat's 112-109 win over the Celtics with BSJ insight and analysis
Box Score
HEADLINES
Herro, turnovers put Celtics in 3-1 hole: Jayson Tatum scored 28 points in the final 18 minutes of Game 4 but it was too little too late in a sluggish effort for the All-Star (six turnovers) and the Celtics. Tyler Herro erupted off the bench with a game-high 37 points to lead four different Heat players with 20+ points as Miami held off a late Celtics push in the closing seconds for a 112-109 win.
The Celtics scored 65 points in the second half as they fought back from a 12-point deficit behind Tatum’s hot shooting but it was not enough to overcome Herro’s shooting from all over the floor as he got the best of Kemba Walker and Boston's defense all night. Boston’s small-ball five lineup failed to get stops down the stretch (21 points allowed in final six-plus minutes) and the C’s were far too careless with the ball (19 turnovers) throughout Game 4 early and late as Boston played their worst game of the series on both ends of the floor.
The win gives the Heat a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series with Game 5 coming up on Friday night.
Celtics no-show first half: The Celtics only trailed by six points at intermission but it probably should have been by double digits based on their sluggish play out of the gate. The C’s did little right on the offensive end, shooting just 40 percent from the field while committing 11 turnovers before the break, giving them their lowest output in a half all postseason long. The only thing that kept the C’s from falling into a bigger hole was some uncharacteristic poor shooting from 3-point range from Miami (23.5 percent). For a game with so much on the line for Boston, they came out decidedly flat, a trend that continued to pop up after the Toronto series. The Celtics showed some fight late but they weren’t able to sustain it with stops when it mattered.
TURNING POINT
After falling behind Boston for the first time since the first half early in the fourth quarter (85-84), the Heat fought back with a 7-0 run fueled by the dynamic offense of Herro to take the lead for good. The Celtics got no closer than three points the rest of the way as Miami’s offense managed to match the C's score-for-score largely down the stretch.
TWO UP
Kemba Walker’s offense in the first half: The All-Star was the only Celtic who had any kind of rhythm early, scoring a team-high 12 points in the first half on 4-of-8 shooting. He finished with 20 points and failed to commit a turnover but struggled defensively with mismatches.
Rob Williams: The big man saw his first action in the series since Game 1 as a counter electing to go small at backup center with Andre Iguodala. Williams was the only player with a positive plus/minus in the first half for Boston, posting four points and three rebounds and plenty of solid defense in his eight minutes. He finished with 4 points, 4 rebounds and a +10 in 12 minutes.
TWO DOWN
Jayson Tatum in the first half: The All-Star was held scoreless in a half for the first time all season as he missed all six of his shots, including four from beyond the arc. He chipped in with other areas but the lack of scoring plus three turnovers really stalled the C’s offense.
Turnovers: The Celtics committed a series-high 11 of their 19 turnovers in the first half, with the vast majority coming from the C’s young guard in the starting five with Tatum, Brown, and Smart combining for 14 of the 19 miscues.
TOP PLAY
drive
drive
drive
splash ? pic.twitter.com/z1uGu1Gm7f
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) September 24, 2020
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
Rob Williams getting a chance was a good call but he deserved more time: It won’t show up as much in the stat sheet but the Celtics were clearly ready for some small ball tactics by the Heat in this one by the way Brad Stevens managed his rotation. Spoelstra opted to play Andre Iguodala and Solomon Hill some at backup center over Kelly Olynyk, and Stevens tried to take advantage of that by putting Rob Williams back into the rotation. Williams rim running put some pressure on the Heat in the first half and his energy (three offensive rebounds) was notable on a team that was largely devoid of a spark from the opening tip. Williams was a team-high plus-10 in 12 minutes and probably deserved a little more run in this game with given the circumstances and how solid he looked defensively. He certainly earned himself another shot in a do or die Game 5.
Best five lineup warts show late: The Celtics were in need of some offense down the stretch to match the firepower of Herro and company so Brad Stevens turned to his best five lineup very early in the fourth quarter (just under seven minutes remaining) for a spark. While the offense was there in stretches, most of the damage came with the game already decided as the problem with this group is that it showed its defensive warts and lack of continuity together against a well-oiled Heat offense. Bam Adebayo found himself matched up down low on Walker in a switch on one possession, while the Heat’s off-ball cutting found easy looks for Dragic on multiple possessions as well, along with multiple offensive rebounds. A lack of cohesion was evident on that end of the floor and that came back to bite Boston in a tight game for the third time in this series. Stevens doesn’t have many better options offensively but he might want to consider going offense/defense as much as possible with his lineups late to prevent the issues that plagued the C’s late.
