The Miami Heat tied a franchise playoff record 23 3-pointers to tie the first round of their Eastern Conference series against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night with a 111-101 victory.
After a tense first half, the Heat outscored the Celtics 27-18 in the third quarter to regain the lead. Even in the 1-1 series, it was an advantage they could not give up.
The New Orleans Pelicans weren't so lucky. After narrowly losing Game 1 in a thrilling game, they fell to 2-0 with a 124-92 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder were up by double digits at the end of the first quarter and never wavered.
Game 3 of both series will be played on Saturday night, with the Thunder taking another advantage at 3:30 p.m. ET in New Orleans, and the Celtics looking to regain control at 6 p.m. ET in Miami. .
The Heat bet big on 3-point shooting.Worked well against the Celtics
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said earlier Wednesday that there will be a concerted effort to reduce the Celtics' 3-point attempts and increase them heading into Game 2. This approach worked to Miami's advantage.
The Celtics made good use of their 3-point shooting in Game 1, making 22 of 49 from long range. Game 2 was a different story, going 32-12. Meanwhile, Miami shot 23-of-43 from behind the 3-point line.
Miami's 23 3-pointers were two shy of the NBA playoff record and broke the franchise record of 20 made in the 2021 playoffs against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Tyler Herro made 6 of 11 from long range and Caleb Martin made five 3-pointers on six attempts.
Herro was held to 11 points in 34 minutes on Sunday, but had better success in Game 2, dropping 24 points. He got 21 points each from Martin and Bam Adebayo. Nikola Jovic made an impact on both ends of the court with 11 points, nine rebounds, and six assists.
Herro had 14 assists on the night, leading all players.
Jaylen Brown (33 points, 8 rebounds) and Jayson Tatum (28 points, 8 rebounds) did the best they could, but Miami's offense was much more balanced. The Celtics' bench couldn't make enough of an impact on the game as they lost 20-12 to the Heat's secondary lineup.
The Heat, already without Jimmy Butler (MCL) and Terry Rozier (neck), head home after a game that tied the series and saw an upturn in shooting luck.
Thunder looks like No. 1 seed to beat Pelicans
In Game 1, a 94-92 win, things got too close for comfort for the Thunder. They avoided a rematch and some rematches in Game 2.
All five OKC starters scored in double figures, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished with 33 points on 13-of-19 shooting, five assists and three rebounds. Chet Holmgren (26 points on 9-of-13 shooting) in particular stood out with his shooting streak early on, and then made some authoritative plays when the game got out of hand.
The Pelicans have spent the last few weeks battling for a playoff spot at the end of the regular season, playing both play-in games and then playing a pivotal game before flying to Oklahoma to face the West's top seed. I went. If they are tired, they certainly looked that way Wednesday.
