MIAMI – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 28 points, leading the visiting Boston Celtics to a 103-91 win over the slumping Miami Heat on Friday night. Boston (48-19) also got 25 points from Jrue Holiday, who made 10 of 15 shots, including shooting 5-of-8 on 3-pointers.
Derrick White was key for the Celtics as he scored 12 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter. Through three quarters, he was 0-for-6 on 3-pointers. But he made 3-of-5 from deep in the fourth quarter.
The Heat (29-37), who are 9-25 versus teams with a record of .500 or more, have lost a season-high six straight games. A 10-2 run early in the fourth quarter keyed by a White trey gave the Celtics breathing room and they cruised from there.
Boston, which is 16-4 over its past 20 games, made 19 3-pointers to just 13 for Miami.
Andrew Wiggins led Miami with 23 points, and the Heat got 19 points and a game-high six assists from Tyler Herro.
Boston’s Jaylen Brown, the reigning NBA Finals MVP, sat out the game due to a right-knee injury. Boston replaced the 6-6 Brown with 7-1 Luke Kornet in the starting lineup.
Miami switched up its starting lineup, too, but not due to injury. The Heat started Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Duncan Robinson in place of Kel’el Ware and Davion Mitchell … but to no avail.
To open the game, Boston made its first five shots to take a 14-6 lead. The first four of those shots were 3-pointers.
Miami, though, hung in there, trailing just 30-23 by the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Heat tied the score 37-37 on a 3-pointer by Mitchell. After a Celtics miss, Miami took its first lead of the game, 39-37, on a Pelle Larsson cutting dunk with 5:34 left in the half.
Miami held Boston to 25.0 percent shooting in the second quarter as the teams went into halftime tied, 50-50. Miami shot 61.1 percent in the second quarter, including a 12-4 edge in paint points.
Holiday led all first-half scorers with 16 points. Wiggins had 14 points for Miami.
Miami led by as many as five points in the third, but the Celtics recovered to take a 78-77 lead into the fourth.
Boston then started the fourth with its 10-2 run, and Miami never got back on top.
–Field Level Media