Jaylen Brown had 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists as the Celtics pulled away from the Heat in the fourth quarter.
Jaylen Brown had 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists as the Celtics pulled away from the Heat in the fourth quarter.Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
Derrick White had carried the Celtics throughout Friday’s game against the Heat, so with Boston rolling early in the fourth quarter and White still scorching, he probably earned the chance to fire up one ambitious attempt.
This fadeaway try from the top of the key was well long, but it caromed in off the backboard anyway, a fitting top to his big night.
That shot was part of an eruption in which the Celtics drilled six 3-pointers over the first three minutes of the fourth quarter and helping them flip a tight game into a comfortable 129-116 win. Boston made 10 of its 21 3-pointers in the final period.
White finished with 33 points to lead Boston, and Jaylen Brown added 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists. The Celtics shot 53.7 percent from the field.
Kel’el Ware had 24 points and 14 rebounds to led the Heat, who were playing their second game in as many nights, and were missing five of their top 10 rotation players, including Tyler Herro and Andrew Wiggins. So rookies Kasparas Jakucionis, and Myron Gardner, who had played a combined 18 minutes all season, were thrust into prominent roles.
The Heat battled for three quarters and lingered thanks to 24 second-chance points and finishing with 20 more shots, but the Celtics’ long-range shooting was too much to overcome.
The Celtics led, 92-89, at the start of the fourth when their long-awaited surge arrived.
Sam Hauser hit one 3-pointer, and Hugo Gonzalez, who was a defensive pest for Boston all night, came up with a steal that led to another Hauser 3-point dart that stretched the lead to 98-91.
With Boston leading by 4, White drained a spinning step-back — his eighth 3-pointer of the game — and Anfernee Simons added one from the right corner to make it 104-94, the first double-digit lead for either team.
The Celtics took an early 14-8 lead behind 3-pointers by White and Payton Pritchard. White’s hot shooting continued for the rest of the half. He had 19 points and was 5 for 8 from long range, but the rest of the team combined to hit just 2 of 11.
Miami’s offense could not get on track early. The Heat started 3 for 17 from the floor. It was partly due to poor shooting, and partly due to the Celtics swatting away four shots in the first five minutes, with White accounting for three.
Heat guard Norman Powell picked up his second foul just four minutes into the second quarter but seemed aware of the lack of available reinforcements. Miami coach Erik Spoelstra was going to take him out of the game, but Powell waved off the substitution.
The gamble paid off, with Powell pushing the Heat right back into the game with a quick 3-point play and running layup.
Brown eased his way into the game offensively, with six minutes passing before he attempted a shot, and 15 before he made one. He never established a first-half rhythm, with three turnovers and just six points.
The Heat’s offense, meanwhile, remained clunky. But Miami made up for its shortcomings by crashing for offensive rebounds and converting some timely second-quarter 3-pointers.
The score was tied 58-58 at halftime despite the fact that the Heat made just 20 of 60 shots. But they registered 17 more attempts than the Celtics and tallied 17 second-chance points.
In the third quarter the Heat stretched their lead to 80-73 on a Jackucionis corner 3-pointer with 5:51 left. But the Celtics responded with a gradual 8-0 run. The rest of the quarter devolved into a free-throw contest, with one foul after another while both teams were in the bonus. The teams combined to take 25 foul shots in the third quarter alone, and Boston took a three-point lead to the fourth.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.