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The Miami Heat take charge of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics thanks to a monster Jimmy Butler performance.
In the opening game of the Eastern Conference finals at TD Garden, the eighth-seeded Miami Heat outdueled the second-seeded Boston Celtics 123-116.
Miami trailed by nine points at the half before coming back and outscoring Boston 66-50 over the remaining two quarters, setting a franchise playoff record with 46 points in the third.
The Miami Heat rallied in the second half to defeat the Boston Celtics on the road thanks in large part to Jimmy Butler's 35 points, including 23 after the break.
Jimmy Butler propels Miami Heat to beat Boston Celtics
Butler had 30 or more points in his fifth postseason game, and he also had seven assists, six steals, and five rebounds.
Despite having 30 points as the Celtics' top scorer, Jayson Tatum didn't attempt a shot in the last quarter.
Jaylen Brown recorded 22 points and 9 rebounds in the game while 19 more points came from Malcolm Brogdon.
The Celtics, who play their best defense and get more shots off than their opponents, made 10 of 29 three-point attempts.
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The Heat and Celtics battled in the conference finals for the third time in four seasons at the start of Wednesday's matchup. The last meeting was won by Boston in seven games.
In addition, Bam Adebayo had 20 points and 8 rebounds. The other 15 points came from Kyle Lowry, Caleb Martin, Gabe Vincent, and Max Strus.
The eighth-seeded Heat will remain in Boston for the second game on May 19 and have won the first game of each of their three playoff series on the road.
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