LeBron James arrives at the game against Golden State 5 hours before kick-off (from the NBA's official website)
The regional semifinals of the NBA playoffs continue. Tonight (Monday to Tuesday) there were two games. On Sunday, Miami took a 1-3 lead over the Knicks, and on the second, the Lakers also improved to 1-3 after a big comeback against Golden State.
Night Games: Miami (8) vs New York (5) 101:109 (Heat up 1-3 in series)L.A. Lakers (7) vs Golden State (6) 101:
104 (Lakers up 1-3 in series)
One-sided series. Jimmy Butler tonight (Photo by Getty Images, Eric Espada)
A makeover will be an extremely difficult task. Knicks players disappointed (Photo: Reuters)
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Miami (8) vs New York (5) 101:109 (Heat up 1-3 in series)
The Heat continue to dominate the series unchallenged: After leading for the entire 48 minutes in Game 3, this time Jimmy Butler and his teammates fell behind only twice during the first half, and again sat in the driver's seat in the really important second half. It ended with another win that moved the Heat closer to a remarkable achievement, with their third Eastern Conference Finals berth in four years.
The first quarter was still even-handed and ended with a one-point lead for Miami, but in the second quarter the Knicks froze offensively, scoring just 18 points and saw the Heat build a solid lead heading into the break. Butler and Adebayo continued to dominate in the third quarter, and Miami entered the final quarter with a 9-point lead. At that point, the Heat did give the Knicks a chance, but they just couldn't take it: Miami missed 12 of its first 15 shots in the quarter, but the closest the Knicks got was minus-6 with four and a half minutes left on the clock. From there, Caleb Martin scored an important basket that gave Miami a safety zone, and shortly thereafter fouled Julius Randle with a 6-point foul that finally overwhelmed the Knicks.
Critical basket. Caleb Martin celebrates (Photo by Getty Images, Eric Espada)
32 points were not enough. Jaylen Brunson (Photo: Reuters)
Jimmy Butler finished as the Heat's leading scorer with 27 points (9-of-17 from the field) and also added 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 23 steals and 13 blocks. Bam Adebayo assisted with 16 points and 15 rebounds, and Max Strus (5) and Kyle Lowry (4, 32 rebounds and 11 assists) again contributed theirs. The Knicks were led by Jalen Brunson with 24 and 20 assists. R.J. Barrett finished with 9 and Julius Randle with 5 and 48 rebounds, but the Knicks will return to Madison Square Garden for Game <> on Wednesday-Thursday night with their backs against the wall, <> minutes away from elimination.
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- Golden State Warriors
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Miami Heat
- New York Knicks