The Boston Celtics, fueled by a near triple-double from Jayson Tatum, on Sunday held off the short-handed, but determined Miami Heat 110-106 in an NBA clash that turned testy in a tense fourth quarter.
NBA leaders Boston, who blew out the Heat last month, found the going tougher this time as the Heat cut a 15-point third-quarter deficit to two with less than two minutes remaining.
Boston star Jaylen Brown and Miami’s Duncan Robinson exchanged heated words after tangling early in the final period, with Brown assessed a flagrant foul, but the Celtics — stunned by the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals last season — kept their heads down and polished off Miami.
Photo: Jim Rassol-USA Today
Tatum scored 26 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists.
Kristaps Porzingis added 25 points, Brown scored 20 points and Jrue Holiday chipped in 15 for the Celtics, who made 16 of 39 three-point attempts.
Tyler Herro scored 22 of his 24 points in the second half. His three-pointer with 1 minute, 49 seconds remaining pulled the Heat within 106-104, but Porzingis and Tatum sealed the win at the free-throw line.
“They’re a good team, they’re going to go on runs,” Tatum said. “You’ve just got to withstand it and answer.”
Tatum said the Celtics are “better than we were last year at this point,” but cautioned that the pressure “really kicks up” after next week’s NBA All-Star Game break.
“We’re playing good basketball, but we’ve still got some ways to go,” he said. “But I think we’re on the right direction.”
The Heat were without their scoring and assists leader Jimmy Butler, who was absent from the team after a death in his family.
They also lost Terry Rozier and Josh Richardson to injuries. Rozier made an awkward landing on his right leg on a drive to the basket in the third quarter. Richardson departed in the second quarter with a shoulder injury.
In Sunday’s only other game, Western Conference contenders Oklahoma City snapped a two-game skid with a 127-113 victory over the Sacramento Kings.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points and Jalen Williams added 32 for the Thunder, who bounced back from a lopsided loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.
The Thunder have not lost three straight all season and they looked determined to keep it that way, jumping to an 18-8 lead midway through the first quarter.
“Usually when we lose and we lose big it’s because of our first quarter,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We set the tone early and that gave us the edge the rest of the game.”
Oklahoma City led by 17 going into the fourth quarter and Sacramento could not get the deficit below seven points in the final period.
Kings center Domantas Sabonis had a triple-double of 21 points, 11 rebounds and 14 assists, while Malik Monk scored 26 points off the bench.
De’Aaron Fox, who was averaging almost 27 points per game, was held to 15 as the Thunder scored 30 points off 18 Kings turnovers.
“We got into a good rhythm,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We were playing fast, we were getting stops and when we get out in transition we’re the best version of ourselves.”
A runner who stopped during a marathon in China to pose doing the splits and another who hoarded energy gels have been banned for two years, the local athletics association said yesterday. The incidents happened during Sunday’s marathon in Sichuan Province’s Chengdu and were widely shared online. Videos showed a female runner stopping suddenly and dropping to the ground in the splits position, holding up her arms in a heart shape as she apparently posed for a photograph. She “committed obstructive fouls during the race, affecting the safe participation of other runners,” the Sichuan Athletics Association said in a statement, which identified
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
Workers are hammering, cranes are swinging and seats are being bolted into place — but the clock is ticking. Mexico City’s famous Azteca stadium, reborn as Estadio Banorte, is in a frantic race to be ready for its grand reopening on Saturday. Drone footage showed crews installing seats and attaching the new stadium name to the facade, with cranes looming overhead 48 hours before the gates are due to open for a high-profile friendly between Mexico and Portugal. For residents, the breakneck pace of construction has done little to inspire confidence. “I know they are working practically seven days a week, 24 hours
RSS