BOSTON – Boston used balance to identify its dominance over the Miami Heat on Sunday afternoon to set the tone in the first of the playoffs.
Six other Celtics scored between 10 and 23 points, Jayson Tatum recorded his first career triple-double in the playoffs and the Cs beat the Heat at TD Garden to win Game 1 of the playoffs, 114-94.
Jaylen Brown got off to a 14-0 start with a triple and a spinning dunk from the gate. The Celtics capitalized on that momentum, winning as many as 34 points in the second phase before taking a 91-59 lead. in the last quarter.
It was an impressive opening for a team that had just had a full week of rest between games. However, Derrick White didn’t think he would rust despite the extended break.
“We didn’t come into the game consistently because we had a long break,” he said. “I just looked to be competitive from the start and I think we did a smart job. “
White was one of six Celtics to reach double digits, as he finished second on the team with 20 points. Kristaps Porzingis scored 18 points, Jaylen Brown had 17, and Sam Hauser and Al Horford had 12 points and 10 points off the bench, respectively.
Tatum led the team’s balanced offense with one of the most balanced individual games of his career. He had 23 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and two steals, the first Celtic to record a triple-double in the playoffs since Marcus Smart on Sept. 9. , 2020 vs. Toronto.
“His mentality and technique were great,” Joe Mazzulla said of Tatum’s performance. “I think he played with a lot of patience, he chose his pitches very well. I think he took what the defense had given him and figured out the balance between creating for himself and for others. So fighting for that field on the offensive end, on both ends of the floor, is a huge key to this series.
Another key to this series is dealing with Miami’s streaks, which the Cs were going to do in Game 1. After falling into that 14-0 hole, the Heat rallied and pulled within three points early in the second quarter. But Boston fought back, and took an even bigger lead than they had going into the game.
“They’re a smart team. They’re going to run errands,” White said. “We’ve noticed it for years. I only check that balance when they’re competing. I’m just checking the output to figure out we went in and figured out how we can look smart offensively and, whatever the defense is, make it work.
The Celtics put Miami in danger by releasing Hauser, who hit four 3-pointers in a span of 2:41 early in the second quarter to give his team a 12-point comeback. Boston will need that kind of effort off the bench, and he, Al Horford and Payton Pritchard contributed, while Mazzulla kept the same eight-man rotation we saw in the normal season.
“Sam is one of the main reasons we prolonged the game into that second quarter,” Tatum said. “You want things like that to be a playoff success. It’s not going to be the guys starting the game. “game. Every night we’re going to have someone on the bench to replace the speed of the game, or to mess things up the right way and replace the dynamic of what we’re doing.
As long as the Celtics keep doing what they’re doing, it’s going to be hard to beat them. At least that’s how Porzingis felt at the end of the first game.
“I’m glad we made it this far like we did today,” he said after his first playoff delight with the Celtics. “We’ve just set the bar for the rest of our journey. “
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