BSJ Game Report: Celtics 95, Heat 78 - Celtics show what they're capable of when they play the right way

Everything you need to know about the Celtics 95-78 win over the Miami Heat with BSJ insight and analysis

Now that’s more like it. The Boston Celtics came out and fought hard, withstanding a cold start to the game where all their shots seemed to miss short. Still they were playing well, and all they needed to do was stick with what they were doing and trust it would work. 

It did. 

The Celtics, powered by their bench (I know, finally, right?) including Aaron Nesmith and Romeo Langford, dominated the second quarter, winning it 33-9 and taking an 18 point lead into the half. Miami made a run in the third, but the Celtics responded and built their lead back out, cruising to what was easily their most impressive win of the young season.

Box Score

HEADLINES 

Celtics win bench battle: I highlighted this in the preview as one of the things to watch. Tyler Herro has been awesome to start the year, but he was a -32 in this game. Meanwhile, Langford was +25, Dennis Schröder was +26, and Nesmith was +15. 

“Tyler Herro averages 20 himself and we held their whole bench to 20, so we did our job there,” Udoka said. “We focused on certain things and our bench really outplayed theirs.”

Much more on these guys coming up.

Defense (clap clap) Defense (clap clap): The league’s second-best offense was held to 78 points on 33.8% shooting (20% 3pt). Before the game, Ime Udoka challenged his team to put together a complete game, and they basically did. Sure, some of this was cold Miami shooting, but one could argue that the defensive pressure Boston exerted early knocked them off rhythm and their guys just could never get going.

TURNING POINT

Miami made a huge run in the middle of the third quarter, but the Celtics answered. The Celtics snapped a 4:03 scoreless streak in the third quarter when Romeo Langford drew a foul and hit two free throws to make it a 12 point game. Miami cut it to 8, but Schröder found his way to the hoop, Langford hit a 3-pointer, Jaylen Brown hit a free throw, and Al Horford slammed home a dunk for an 8-0 run. The Celtics ultimately finished the quarter even, maintaining their 18 point halftime lead.

SECOND GUESS

I mean, the obvious second guess right now is why hasn’t Nesmith been getting minutes all along. To be fair, this game from Nesmith is a lot different than how he looked in New York. He really was playing fast and he seemed pretty comfortable and confident in this one.

SIX UP 

Aaron Nesmith: Came in with the exact spark the Celtics needed, and one that will have all of us who cover the team fielding the “why hasn’t Ime played him?” questions. 

“It wasn’t just that he played poorly, it was other guys who played well,” Udoka explained after the game. “(He) got squeezed there for a little bit for some minutes, but always have confidence in him. He’s a guy who we know can light it up, bring us a spark off the bench and then being solid on defense is just an added bonus there.”

Nesmith finished with 13 points on 5-8 shooting (3-5 3pt). Also, the number of bodies hitting the floor in this game easily tripled with Nesmith in there. 

Romeo Langford: His 3-pointer in the third quarter was huge. “I wasn't too worried. I didn't even know that was a big shot,” Langford said. “I was just shooting, just playing the game and letting it come to me. It does feel good to see things go my way.” 

Al Horford: He not only had that dunk (you’ll see it when you scroll down), he had a contested 3-pointer in the corner that he splashed. He also blocked two more shots. Solid game. 

Robert Williams: The box score does not really indicate how active he was tonight, though you might guess it from the 5 offensive rebounds. He was in the middle of a scrum battling for boards. His energy was a huge but very underrated part of this win. 

Jaylen Brown: Kept the Celtics close early in the game, and he’s been a steady force offensively all season long. He also played some great defense, including one early individual highlight guarding Jimmy Butler that ended with a straight up block. He left the game in the fourth with right hamstring tightness, though, which is an issue. He’s had right hamstring issues in the past, which Udoka acknowledged when he said the team was being cautious with it.

Dennis Schröder: He had a big third-quarter stretch where he stole the ball twice, grabbed a few rebounds, and scored 5 points to hold off the Heat.  

TWO DOWN

Jayson Tatum: The slump continues with a 3-13 night from the floor. The Celtics rolled Miami with Tatum scoring just 10 points, but I will give him credit for only taking 7 shots through the first three quarters and doing other things while he was cold. He didn’t try to dominate the game or look for his shot. He was rewarded with a 3-4 fourth where he scored all 10 points and put the Heat away. 

Grant Williams: He had a rough stretch with bad turnovers in the third quarter. 

TOP PLAY

Get up Al Horford!

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

You’ve exposed yourselves as a good team, Boston! 

This is what happens when you strip away all the BS and the team puts forth a full effort and executes plays on both ends. 

This is how it’s supposed to look. 

This wasn’t some fluky win. Even if you argue that Miami might have won on a normal shooting night, it doesn't change that they would have had to earn that win. The Celtics came out with purpose in this game. They didn’t stand around and watch on either end. They helped, recovered, and rotated well on defense. They attacked and kicked on offense. 

They didn’t play perfectly, but they played well. And they did it for pretty much the whole game minus that middle of the third-quarter stretch. Even there, they withstood a run and didn't fold. 

And now that we know you can do it, Celtics, how about doing it again? Do you want to serve the panicking hoards a big, steaming glass of STFU? Then come out with this kind of effort more often. Do it in Dallas and come home 5-5. 

For the love of God, please do not saunter into Dallas with a “did you see what we just did in Miami? Please bow before your king” attitude. March in there with this same energy and say “hey, let us show you what we did to Miami.” 

You’ve proven you can do it. The secret’s out. Go do it again.