By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Jayson Tatum scored 27 points, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown each had 24 as the Celtics got things under control from the get-go to beat the Miami Heat 127-102 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
“Guys have pride and looked at a golden opportunity that we kind of lost (in Game 1) and thought we could do much better,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. “And we did that tonight.”
Smart was a rebound shy of a triple-double, after adding 12 assists and nine rebounds.
Grant Williams scored 19 points for Boston, which used a 17-0 run late in the first quarter, which included five threes, to take control and never looked back. Payton Pritchard and Al Horford each had 10 for the Celtics.
Jimmy Butler had 29 points in 32 minutes for Miami, which was defeated for the first time at home in this season’s playoffs. Gabe Vincent and Victor Oladipo each scored 14 points, and Tyler Herro added 11 for the Heat.
“This only count as one,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That’s what the experienced players in the locker room and staff understand. We don’t like it. They played extremely well. You have two really good teams and we just have to figure some things out.”
German big man Daniel Theis added two points in six minutes for the winning side, while Turk center Omer Yurtseven also had two points for Miami.