NBA play-offs: Miami snatches Game 7 against Boston, heroic Butler (videos)

The Heat, with their backs to the wall but the bit in their teeth, like Jimmy Butler, exceptional with 47 points, won at the Celtics on Friday to push the two teams to a decisive seventh game in the Eastern Conference Finals , NBA playoffs.

Yet pushed by their fans, the C’s made the bitter experience of it in their TD Garden, on this sixth game played and led almost from start to finish, with the energy of despair, by the Heat.

“We know what we are capable of. We knew we were going to get a win here. And we know we’re going to win the next one too,” Butler reacted afterwards.

Lowry’s Awakening

Shadow of himself 48 hours earlier, visibly diminished by his chronic inflammation of a knee, the winger reacted like a champion. Author of 47 points (his best total in a play-off match, 16/29 on shots, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 interceptions) in 46 minutes, almost the entirety of the meeting, he guided his people on the path to success.

And he carried them at arm’s length when the victory seemed to have escaped them due to Boston’s battering at the end of the match, in the wake of Jayson Tatum (30 pts, at 9/12, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 interceptions, 1 against) who really wanted to end it, but did not succeed.

Because following the example of its leader, the entire Heat team fought for the win. Author of a zero point in scoring during the previous match, Kyle Lowry also responded in the best way (18 pts, 10 assists).

Just like Mike Strus, who remained on a 0/14 behind the arc in this conference final, and who unlocked his counter (3/8) for 13 very useful points. A fortiori in the persistent absence of Tyler Herro (groin) and while Bam Adebayo was once again little used (6 pts at 3/6, 9 rebounds).

PJ Tucker (11 pts, 5 rebounds, 2 steals) was decisive in the final minutes, restoring oxygen to the Heat (105-99) with three free throws obtained by intercepting a ball in the hands of Tatum, while he risked exclusion with five fouls, then on a crucial defensive rebound.

Brown a disparu

Boston, which was 13 points behind in the third quarter, came even closer (105-101) in the last minute. Moment at which Butler, again, planted the shot at the buzzer of 24 seconds which ended up disgusting his opponents.

“Jimmy showed what a competitor he is. He showed a will that prevented us from losing ”, paid tribute to him his trainer Erik Spoelstra.

What did the Celtics miss? Probably a more consistent second period from Jaylen Brown, author of only 2 points after having been effective in the first act (18). Al Horford also sinned offensively (3 pts, 9 rebounds, 5 assists) despite his excess of energy.

Derrick White (22 pts, 5 assists, s 3 steals) has long believed he was the player who can make a difference off the bench, but with Tatum and Robert Williams (12 pts, 5/7), he was the only one to shoot correctly on the Boston side.