MANILA – Miami averted a major collapse never seen before in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and finally clinched the Eastern Conference championship with a 103-84 win against Boston in Game 7 of their series on Tuesday (PH time) at the TD Garden.
Already on the verge of sweeping the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals but lost their next three games, the Heat clipped the Celtics on the road with their solid defense that held the hosts to just 39 percent field goal shooting.
Jimmy Butler led Miami, which became only the second team to enter the NBA Finals as the eighth seed, with 28 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.
The swingman was later named Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP).
Caleb Martin, the runner-up in the MVP race, added 26 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and one steal, while Bam Adebayo chipped in 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and one block.
Boston, which failed to become the first NBA team to complete a 0-3 series comeback, was led by Jaylen Brown who had 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal, and two blocks, while Jayson Tatum played through an ankle injury he suffered in the first quarter and added 14 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and one steal.
Game 1 between the Heat and the Denver Nuggets for the NBA championship is set Friday at the Ball Arena in Denver. (PNA)
