Final: Celtics 102, Heat 82 - Celtics capitalize off Miami’s early shooting slump, hold on for Game 4 victory

What a difference a few days can make. 

In what has become a recurring trend in this Eastern Conference Finals, momentum has been non-existent from night to night for both the Celtics and Heat — with Miami going from a 39-point salvo in the first quarter of a Game 3 win to an 0-for-14 drought from the field to open Monday’s Game 4 rematch at TD Garden.

With Miami bricking just about every look they tried to sink in the first 8 minutes of action (Victor Oladipo hit their first field goal with 3:21 left in the first), the Celtics built a lead that they would not relinquish — with a 29-11 cushion after 12 minutes setting Boston on course to a 102-82 win and a 2-2 deadlock in this best-of-seven series.

After hitting just 3-of-14 shots and dropping just 10 points in Saturday’s Game 3 loss, Jayson Tatum rebounded in a major way — scoring 31 points in 34 minutes. Robert Williams, cleared for game action after knee issues put him on the shelf Saturday, was once again a difference-maker down both ends of the court, recording 12 points and nine rebounds over 19 minutes of action. Al Horford was a defensive menace — blocking four shots and pulling down 13 rebounds. 

Unlike previous contests in which Boston allowed Miami to crawl back into games, the Celtics shut the door to open the second half — outscoring the Heat, 12-4, in the opening minutes of the third quarter to help guarantee plenty of garbage time in the fourth. 

Of course, the Celtics can’t rest on their laurels off of such a blowout on a night in which they still had some shooting woes. But a win is a win, and the C’s will certainly take what is now a best-of-3 series against Miami. 

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ROUND 3, GAME 4 
(1) Miami Heat vs. (2) Boston Celtics
TD Garden
8:30 PM - ABC 

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

Boston: Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Grant Williams

Miami: Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, Jimmy Butler, PJ Tucker, Bam Adebayo

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

- Marcus Smart is out with a right ankle sprain

That sprain looked pretty bad. I’m not surprised that Smart came back and played on it because Sprains can stay loose and guys can come back depending on a few different things. But sprains always get worse overnight, so I’m also not surprised that Smart is out. 

- Robert Williams will play

"He benefits us obviously with the lob threat and the rim threat there," Ime Udoka said. "Teams tend to not step up and crowd as much off him with the easy outlet there but we do have some spacing that works well when he's not there, spreading the guys out with Grant and Al, and you saw that in the Milwaukee series. So it works both ways but he is a pretty good outlet there obviously. You know, defensively, just a turn in the lane, he's our best guy overall reading when to help, when to stay with his own but you can notice that other teams are looking for him when they penetrate to the paint on the other end of the paint as well."

- Jayson Tatum is fine.

It was a stinger in his shoulder.

- Tyler Herro is out with a left groin strain. 

He’s expected to play in the next game. As I wrote earlier, this still hurts Miami despite his cold shooting. Victor Oladipo will likely get more minutes, but aside from that four-steal game, he hasn’t been overly impactful. Plus, it could open up Duncan Robinson minutes, which helps Boston. 

- Boston is favored by 7

THREE THINGS TO WATCH FOR

1. Earlier passes: Instead of dribbling two or three extra times, the Celtics can get off the ball quicker and force the Heat to rotate. By trying to do it themselves, Tatum and Brown often go up against two or three guys. By moving the ball, their teammates will open up seams and then the stars can get through them. 

This is the basketball equivalent of trying to move a mattress up the stairs yourself. You can probably do it, but it will take too much effort and it’s just not worth it. A few extra hands can help twist that thing up the third floor in no time. 

2. Staying home on Oladipo: One impact of not having Herro is that Boston can single-cover Oladipo without worrying about getting torched. That's going to leave some help for other players. In fact, if Robert Williams plays and he’s in during Oladipo minutes, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him guarding Oladipo simply because he can roam. 

3. Jayson Tatum going off: Tatum followed up his Game 3 stinker against Milwaukee with a 30 point, 13 rebound, 5 assist night with just 2 turnovers. He’ll respond again, I think. Especially if he doesn’t try to overdo it against a Miami wall. 

A LITTLE BIT MORE

Tom Westerholm and I discussed some of these points on the latest Locked On Celtics podcast.

GAME THREAD

Stick around for more comments below as the game goes on. Feel free to add your two cents in the comments.