The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat are deadlocked in their postseason matchup for what seems like the millionth time.
Miami stunned the C’s in Game 2 on Wednesday night at TD Garden by outshooting them from outside the arc 111-101.
In the first game, the C’s tied a franchise record for 3-pointers made, and in the second, the Heat answered with 23 of their own, breaking their own postseason record.
How, then, did Miami rewrite the story? Let’s examine three lessons from Boston’s sad Game 2 loss that will help us understand why the first-round playoff series is poised 1-1.
The Celtics need to feed Porzingis Kristaps
Celtics center In Game 1, Kristaps Porzingis was unstoppable. He was making deep shots and applying heat in the paint with some challenging ones.
In the second game, things were completely different as the Heat made it exceedingly tough for the Latvian big man to get an entry pass. Miami would rush to either yank the ball from Porzingis or block up the pass if the Celtics found him down low. Consequently, the 2018 All-Star shot a horrid 1-for-9 from the field and finished with only six points.
After the game, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla talked about how the Heat were able to stop Porzingis.
He remarked, “I mean, they did a good job being physical.” “Pressuring catches upwards.”
Throughout the regular season, Porzingis’ post-up game proved to be beneficial to the Green Team. To watch it vanish in Game 2 was a major setback for Boston.
Jaylen Brown of the Celtics also brought up the Heat’s heightened aggression in response to a question about how Miami tied up Porzingis.
Because they are physical, it’s difficult. They take satisfaction in trying to make everything difficult, and they want to force catches out, particularly if the whistle blows in their favor,” he said. We simply need to compete for our space; we need to be equally physical and eager for it. Take charge of our area, physically catch the ball, accept it, and don’t wait for the referee to declare a foul. It seems to me to be an attitude.
The Celtics must hit Porzingis with stronger entry passes and watch out for incoming double-teams if they hope to take the series lead in Miami.
A three-point deficit becomes fatal for Boston.
A cursory look at the box score tells you a lot about this game: the Heat were quite dominant, while the Celtics were not.
Miami had a 20-point postseason record for 3-pointers prior to Game 2. Despite exceeding that total by three points, the Heat shot 53.5% (23-for-43) from beyond the arc against Boston. Conversely, the C’s only made 12 of their 32 attempts to convert from beyond the arc.
Brown was forced to admit that his team was outplayed on the perimeter.
They moved quickly when they played. Additionally, they were, well, taking shots. They were being struck by guys who we want to be shooting the ball,” he remarked. “We were just unable to get them to miss. Though we thought they were good closeouts, those men deserve praise.
It’s necessary to give them credit. They made more three-pointers tonight—they were pretty good with the ball. It wasn’t like we weren’t trying hard or being connected for the most part.
We wish we could take back some of the opportunities we lost, like some open looks and some transition threes. They were simply too cozy. However, you have to give them credit—they made some good shots tonight.
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