Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat too strong for New York Knicks in Game 3
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Jimmy Butler (left) scored 28 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 105-86 win over the New York Knicks in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semi-final series on Saturday.
PHOTO: AFP
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MIAMI – Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was pleased with Jimmy Butler’s triumphant return from injury, and said that having his star player in his line-up had infused the team with confidence.
On Saturday night, the forward once again led the Heat’s scoring with 28 points as they beat the New York Knicks 105-86 to take a 2-1 lead in their National Basketball Association (NBA) Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Butler, who sat out Miami’s Game 2 defeat in New York on Tuesday after rolling his ankle in Game 1, showed no sign of the problem as he also added four rebounds and three assists at the Kaseya Centre.
“You can’t put an analytic to it. It’s just the overall confidence level your team has – that you can always get the ball to him and know that we’ll get something efficient and coherent,” Spoelstra said.
“We have a bunch of guys stepping up. We’re more dangerous when a lot of guys are putting their fingerprints on the win at both ends of the court. But you need a guy like Jimmy when you’re playing against a good team like this.”
Butler was one of four Miami players to finish in double figures in a game that the eighth-seeded Heat led from start to finish.
Max Strus finished with 19 points, including three three-pointers, while defensive linchpin Bam Adebayo weighed in with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Kyle Lowry added 14 points for Miami.
“It feels good to get a dub (win) on our home floor in front of our fans. We’re going to take that and roll with it,” said Butler, whose dazzling form helped eliminate the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the post-season.
“I’m comfortable, I’m confident and I work extremely hard at my craft. My teammates have got a lot to do with that. They always make sure I’m catching the ball in spots where I’m comfortable and letting me be aggressive.”
Jalen Brunson led New York with 20 points as the Knicks were outmuscled by a combative Miami line-up who outscored their opponents in all four quarters.
New York’s problems were compounded by a dismal shooting performance, with the Knicks making just 31 of 91 from the field.
“The start of the game, we got back on our heels, their aggressiveness... we couldn’t get stops early, so we didn’t get any easy buckets, we paid the price,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.
“We got bogged down and offence was hard. But credit to them, they played great defence. Offensively, we didn’t play the way we wanted to. I don’t put that on one player. It’s a collective effort.”
Game 4 in the best-of-seven series takes place in Miami on Monday. AFP
