Heat fall to Celtics 129-116 after fourth quarter collapse

The Heat dropped the sixth of their last seven games against the Celtics, courtesy of 63 points combined from Derrick White and Jaylen Brown.
(Photo via NBA.com)

The Miami Heat snapped their five-game losing streak on Thursday in a win against the Brooklyn Nets, but staying in the win column didn’t last very long. On the second night of a back-to-back, they failed to get any momentum going again as they suffered another disappointing loss to the rival Boston Celtics inside TD Garden, 129-116.

By halftime, the game was tied despite Miami struggling to shoot the ball. They even remained in striking distance by the end of the third quarter, until the Celtics completely pulled away in the final period. Derrick White’s 33 points and Jaylen Brown’s 30 points, respectively, completely torched the Heat defense. White nailed nine of his 14 3-point attempts. Sharpshooting Sam Hauser added 15 points off the bench.

As for the Heat, only one man really showed up ready to play. And that was Kel’el Ware, who remained in the starting lineup for the second straight game.

Ware put up another dominant statline of a 24 points and 14 rebounds double-double on 8 of 12 shooting. He also showcased his offensive versatility by spreading the floor with hitting 6 of his 7 3-pointers.

Unfortunately, not many others showed up. The Heat were shorthanded going into the night with just 10 players available, after starters Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell were late scratches due to injury. Tyler Herro and Pelle Larsson also remained out.

That led to rookie point guard Kasparas Jakucionis getting the opportunity for his first career start. He only went 5 of 13 from the field, but still added 17 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while displaying a natural feel to the game in his encouraging 36 minutes.

Bam Adebayo and Norman Powell each struggled heavily with their shooting. Adebayo added a 16/10 double-double of his own, but he appeared passive in looking to generate offense. Powell shot just 7 of 21 overall (33%) to total 18 points, to go along with an abysmal 1 of 11 from deep. Although he has been banged up and playing through minor injuries recently, that type of inefficiency is never going to get the job done as the Heat’s leading scorer.

Miami limped to 39% shooting overall as a team as the Celtics scorched their defense with 54% on the night. The Heat also shot 39% from 3-point range to Boston’s 49%. The offense has clearly dipped over these past few weeks, and with Herro sidelined with another injury— they aren’t any answers in sight. This would have been a significant win to jump the Celtics in the standings and secure back-to-back victories. Instead, the Heat fall to 15-13 on the season and sit at the Eastern Conference’s seventh seed.

The next game will be another daunting task against an East contender versus the New York Knicks inside MSG on Sunday.

Heat fall to Celtics 129-116 after fourth quarter collapse

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