After three losses at the start of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Boston Celtics were under a lot of pressure – now suddenly things are going well. The fifth game in the series also goes to the record champions.
The Boston Celtics clinched their second win against the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals and still have chances of reaching the NBA Finals. After three defeats at the start of the series, the 110:97 on Thursday evening (local time) in the TD Garden in Boston was the second win in a row for the record champions. It’s 3-2 to Miami in the best-of-seven series.
Derrick White with 24 points
“It started with defence, we had a good intensity there. We had fun out there today. We were the team that played harder today,” said Jaylen Brown, who had 21 points for Boston and was one of four Celtics players with at least 20 points. The most successful was Derrick White with 24 points. “The only thing that can stop us is ourselves”, said Brown. After three losses to start a playoff series, no team in the NBA has ever progressed.
The Celtics were never behind in game five of the series and had a 24-point lead at one point. The Heat never found their rhythm against the much better defending Celtics, the best pitcher was Bam Adebayo with 16 points. Boston stole the ball 13 times, with Marcus Smart alone having five steals. Game six is on the German night of Sunday in Miami.