BSJ ECF Game 2 Report: Celtics 127, Heat 102 - 3-point barrage crushes Miami, gives Boston home court

MIAMI — Everything you need to know about the Boston Celtics' win over the Miami Heat in Game 2 of the ECF, with BSJ insight and analysis. 

IN A NUTSHELL

The Heat actually had a strong start, building a 10-point lead early in the first quarter with a barrage of 3-pointers. Boston answered that by closing the quarter on a 20-4 run to take an 11-point lead. They kept it rolling with stifling defense and ridiculous shooting from deep to take a 25-point halftime lead. The Heat made a little run behind Jimmy Butler in the third, but Boston answered that and then some, pushing their lead to 30 in the fourth and cruising to an easy Game 2 win.

Box Score

HEADLINES

Familiar formula: The Celtics took it on the chin in Game 1 of the Bucks series and then blew them out in Game 2. The Celtics hope to tweak the formula a little by not blowing leads in any upcoming games. 

Make/Miss league: The Celtics shot 63% from deep in the first half. That came back down to earth a little but the Celtics ability to make 3-pointers (and generate good ones). They closed the first quarter making six in a row, and the halftime disparity was almost entirely fueled by the difference in 3-point makes. 

Nice to have Horford and Smart back: Hey, remember that dominant Boston defense led by the Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, a rejuvenated Al Horford, and a roaming Robert Williams? It was back in this game in a big way. Boston scored 20 points off 15 Miami turnovers, winning that battle by 11. 

TURNING POINTS

The obvious one is the run Boston went on to close the first quarter. They went from down 18-8 to up 35-24, a 27-6 run, in a hurry. 

There was a second one, though, in the third quarter when Butler went on a personal mission and cut the 25 point lead down to 17. This was a make-or-break time for Boston, and Smart made the play of the game by stripping Bam Adebayo (it officially went down as a blocked shot) and then dropping Max Strus with a dribble move before calmly drilling a free throw line jumper. It was part of a 12-4 run to rebuild the lead and get Boston into the fourth up 25 again. 

SEVEN UP

Marcus Smart: He was one rebound shy of a triple-double and, after some early struggles with his jumper, he settled into a nice offensive game. He controlled the offense with 12 assists, and was directing guys all night all over the floor. Most importantly, he had just one turnover, and it was trying to save a ball out of bounds so I barely count that. 

Jayson Tatum: A very casual 27-point game on 8-13 shooting. He got to the line 7 times and was perfect, he moved the ball well (5 assists) and guarded. He led the Celtics in scoring but it didn’t feel like he had to dominate the game. 

Jaylen Brown: Another efficient night for him, (24 points, 9-17 fg, 4-7 3pt) with just 1 turnover. He did have one tough stretch in the third quarter, but he bookended Boston’s big first-quarter run with 3-pointers, all of which came with Tatum on the bench. 

Robert Williams: Didn’t have a big offensive night (though he could have scored more if Boston didn’t miss him a few times), but he was big defensively. The roaming was back and not only did he have 3 blocked shots, he was able to deter Miami from even trying to get to the rim. 

Al Horford: Steady night for him, 10 points on perfect 4-4 shooting, but like Robert Williams, it was his defensive impact that made the biggest difference. 

“He’s an athletic, long guy who can get out and switch on to those smaller, quicker guards, and it really keeps our defense compact,” Smart said. “It’s not really a mismatch that teams can really try to go after, especially with me and Al on the floor. That's big for us.” 

Grant Williams: He came in at the beginning of the C’s first-quarter run and he helped open the floodgates. He scored 8 points in 5:41, including a couple of 3-pointers.

“Grant came in there, gave us a huge boost,” Horford said. “We’re asking a lot of him, putting him in all different situations, all different positions, and he answers the call every time. It doesn’t matter if he has to guard -- was it Jrue Holiday in the last series, Giannis (Antetokounmpo), in this series, Jimmy, Bam. He’s all over the place, and he’s been really good for us.” 

Payton Pritchard: He ended up a game-high +39. With everyone back, Udoka can be more selective about when he deploys Pritchard so he can be on the floor in the most advantageous matchup possible.

NONE DOWN

Not when you win like this in the ECF. 

TOP PLAYS

The bench reaction the best part 😂 pic.twitter.com/uXUREmaNfj

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 20, 2022

TWO TAKES KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- This is who these guys are.

This is the second-half Celtics. This is the C’s team that blew everyone’s minds from January to April. This is the team that looks like it can win it all. 

“I think we were upset with how that third quarter went and specifically how we got out-toughed,” Udoka said of his team’s ability to bounce back. “They just came out and punked us that third quarter. … but I think our guys have bounced back really well all year, especially in the second half of the year. Haven't lost a lot of two games in a row in a while, and I think obviously adding Marcus and Al back gave us a little boost as far as that.”

It’s like I said earlier in the day. Boston’s at its best when the team plays together. They can be led by Tatum or Brown, but when the whole thing is working and everyone is contributing, they are as good as any team around. 

- Hitting shots > missing shots, but let’s not let that mess with Game 3.

If I have one fear out of this game, it’s that Boston shot 20-40 from deep and they're going to want to do that again but not work for it the same way. 

I feel like I have to repeat myself a lot with some of these points, but these things keep happening. I’d prefer that they didn’t, and maybe it won’t, but Boston always seems to start the next game firing quick 3’s after a hot night to see if any of that magic touch has carried over. 

Let’s not see that this time around, ok? 

Folding over my first take into this one, playing together means moving the ball and working for some of these shots. It’s not just about taking the first one that's there, it’s about working the defense to make sure you’re taking the best one, and that you’re creating great looks for everyone. 

Players feel engaged and part of the offense when that happens. When they feel that way, they also feel like part of the defense. This is how momentum gets built in games. 

Boston hit a ton of shots, but they worked for them. Keep doing it and the volume won’t matter. But if they don’t, we could see Miami steal home court right back.