The Boston Celtics went wire-to-wire to defeat the Miami Heat 100-96 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals at FTX Arena on Sunday night. The Celtics won the best-of-seven series 4-3 and advanced to the NBA Finals. Boston will face the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night at San Francisco.
The Celtics reached the NBA Finals for the 22nd time and the first time since 2010. They played in their NBA record 35th Game 7 contest and look to capture a league-record 18th NBA Championship in the next two weeks.
The last time Miami played in a Game 7 was when they captured the 2012 NBA Championship over the San Antonio Spurs. The Heat did lose Game 7 of the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals at home against the Detroit Pistons. Miami failed to pick up their seventh Eastern Conference title.
Boston scored the first six points of the contest, were up 9-1 in the first three minutes and had a 24-9 lead in the first eight minutes. The Heat stringed eight straight points and closed it to 24-17 with 2:25 remaining. The C's responded as they put in the last eight points of the frame and led 32-17 after one quarter.
The Celtics kept a double-digit lead through most of the second quarter until Miami closed it to 53-44 with 1:26 left in the first half. The Heat went on an 11-2 run and trailed 55-49 by halftime.
In the third quarter, Miami scored seven straight points and were down 72-65 with 5:15 to go. Boston maintained the pace and had an 82-75 lead at the end of the third quarters.
The Heat compiled the first four points of the fourth quarter to make it 82-79 and pulled to their closest margin since the opening minute in the first quarter. The C's answered back with eight consecutive points on their way to a 14-6 spurt. Miami dropped in 11 straight points and were down 98-96 with 44.4 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler missed a go-ahead three-point shot for the lead with 16.6 seconds remaining.
Butler, who played all 48 minutes of the game, led the Heat with a game-high 35 points and nine rebounds. Bam Adebayo compiled a double-double of 25 points and 11 rebounds. Kyle Lowry added 15 points along with seven rebounds.
Jayson Tatum, who was presented the first ever Larry Bird Trophy for Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player, ended up with a double-double of 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Jaylen Brown scored 24 points in the victory. Marcus Smart fell short of a double-double with 24 points and nine rebounds.
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