C's Tighten Up Defense, Hold Heat to 84 Points in Game 3 Win

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The Celtics knew exactly what they needed to do to bounce back from Wednesday night's Game 2 loss to the Heat, and that was to up their defensive intensity as the first-round series shifted down to Miami.

It didn't take long for C's to right the ship on South Beach.

Boston held the Heat to just 12 points in the first quarter of Game 3 Saturday night, setting the tone for a 104-84 win while taking a 2-1 series lead.

It marked Boston's best defensive effort - regular season or postseason - in nearly two full years. It hadn't given up fewer than 85 points since its 93-80 Game 5 win over the Heat in the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals.

Joe Mazzulla described the early portion of Game 3 as a "rock fight," as the two teams combined for just 15 points in the opening six minutes. Boston accounted for 80 percent of those points, grabbing a 12-3 lead out of the gate.

Jaylen Brown noted, "We put an emphasis on defense, trying to make them uncomfortable a little bit. They had a slow start, we had a good start on defense, and I think that opened up the game."

Boston's defensive effort sure opened things up for its offense, as it came alive for a 42-point second quarter. Meanwhile, its defense remained steadfast, taking a 63-39 lead into the break.

"It was just more about our attention to detail on both ends of the floor, mainly on the defensive end," said Jayson Tatum. "Just start the game and not let them be comfortable - regardless if they hit shots tonight, just try to make them work for everything that they get."

Miami's shot-making - particularly from 3-point land - was the main issue in Game 2. It made a franchise playoff-record 23 3-pointers Wednesday night at a 53.5 percent clip. On Saturday night, that number plummetted to nine makes at a 32.1 percent clip, similar to its 12 makes at a 32.4 percent clip in Game 1.

For a Celtics team that led the East in 3-point defense during the regular season, they felt much more like themselves on that end of the floor.

"Teams can come out and hit a plethora of shots," said Brown, "they had a record-breaking night the other day, but we don't panic. When we watched the film, we broke it down seeing where we could make some improvements if we came out we executed, and I thought that's what we did tonight."

On the offensive end, the Celtics put forth another balanced attack, just like they did in Game 1. Brown and Tatum tied for the game lead with 22 points. Kristaps Porzingis bounced back from a tough Game 2 with 18 points on 55.5 percent shooting. And Derrick White chipped in with 16 points.

As a team, the Celtics were deadly from inside the arc, where they shot 62.2 percent.

Overall, it was the type of bounce-back effort that their head coach expected.

"I don't expect them to play perfect and I don't expect a series to be easy or to go a certain way," Mazzulla said. "But I trust them and I know they want to win, and I know they'll do whatever it takes, and I trust their preparation, and I trust who they are."

His players have that same trust in themselves, and they believe that through their preparation, they are just getting started in these playoffs.

Brown pointed out how the team needed a little time to regain its rhythm after playing just two games in the previous 12 days, and he is looking forward to playing every other day for the remainder of this series.

"I feel like we're still getting it going," he said. "I think we've still got another gear to kick into, so I'm looking forward to (Game 4) Monday."