NBA

Miami Heat at Boston Celtics

· East Finals - Game 2
44-38, 17-24 Away
Final
111 - 105

57-25, 32-9 Home

Jimmy Butler scores 27, Miami beats Boston 111-105 to take 2-0 lead in East finals

Bam Adebayo had 22 points, 17 rebounds and nine assists, and Caleb Martin came off the bench to score 25 points for eighth-seeded Miami, which won twice in Boston to earn a chance to complete the sweep at home.

Game 3 is Sunday.

Jayson Tatum had 34 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists for Boston. But the Celtics star went 0 for 3 with two turnovers in the fourth quarter, when Boston blew an 89-77 lead en route to a second home loss in three nights. Jaylen Brown scored 16 points on 7-for-23 shooting; he went 1 for 5 with a turnover in the final quarter, when Miami outscored Boston 36-22.

The Celtics led by 11 in the third quarter and made it a dozen early in the fourth. It was a 96-87 Boston lead when Butler scored, going forehead-to-forehead with Grant Williams before hitting the free throw to complete the three-point play.

Butler sneered at Williams' attempt to get him off his game with words, and after Tatum missed from long distance, Butler drove to the basket to make it a four-point game.

Miami erased it.

Miami trailed 98-96 when Butler was called for an offensive foul, kicking Marcus Smart after landing on a missed 3-pointer.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra challenged, but lost.

Butler responded.

He made a 17-footer to tie it 100-all, and then a short fadeaway to give Miami the lead. After Max Strus made one of two free throws, Adebayo scored on a putback dunk to make it 105-100 with less than a minute to play.

Boston used a 21-2 run to turn an eight-point, first-quarter deficit into an 11-point lead.

TIP-INS

Brown was 1 for 7 in the first quarter, when Tatum scored 12. Derrick White, who made a single 3-pointer, was the only player other than Tatum who scored more than 2 points in the first. … Adebayo and Butler each grabbed five rebounds in the first quarter. … Lowry and Grant Williams did a little shoving after Williams fouled Adebayo with nine minutes left in the second quarter, with no repercussions.

Regular Season Series

Series tied 2-2

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 111 - 105
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 111 - 105
4th 0.0 Bam Adebayo defensive rebound 111 - 105
4th 1.2 Jaylen Brown misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot 111 - 105
4th 8.1 Max Strus makes free throw 2 of 2 111 - 105

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/mia.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originMIA https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/bos.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originBOS
42-92 FG 37-79
46 Field Goal % 47
9-26 3PT 10-35
35 Three Point % 29
18-19 FT 21-24
95 Free Throw % 88
45 Rebounds 35
11 Offensive Rebounds 6
34 Defensive Rebounds 29
23 Assists 22
9 Steals 2
5 Blocks 9
10 Turnovers 15
1 Team Turnovers 0
11 Total Turnovers 15
1 Technical Fouls 1
1 Total Technical Fouls 1
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
17 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 20
4 Fast Break Points 15
48 Points in Paint 48
17 Fouls 20
8 Largest Lead 12
Boston Celtics Boston Celtics Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Sam Hauser, F Day-To-Day Dec 15
Ron Harper Jr., G Day-To-Day Dec 12
Jayson Tatum, F Out Oct 9
Miami Heat Miami Heat Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Nikola Jovic, F Out Dec 17
Norman Powell, G Day-To-Day Dec 17
Tyler Herro, G Day-To-Day Dec 17
Pelle Larsson, G Out Dec 10
Terry Rozier, G Out Oct 23

Game Information

TD Garden

Location: Boston, MA
Attendance: 19,156 · Capacity:

2025-26 Southeast Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Orlando 15 11 .577 - L1
Atlanta 15 12 .556 0.5 W1
Miami 14 12 .538 1 L5
Charlotte 8 18 .308 7 W1
Washington 4 20 .167 10 W1

2025-26 Atlantic Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
New York 18 7 .720 - W5
Toronto 16 11 .593 3 W1
Boston 15 11 .577 3.5 L2
Philadelphia 14 11 .560 4 L1
Brooklyn 7 18 .280 11 W1
Full Standings

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