With their backs against the wall, the Boston Celtics looked to be in trouble in the first half.
Coming out of halftime looking like a completely different team, the Celtics went on a 20-3 run in the third quarter to swipe the lead from the Miami Heat. Boston wouldn’t surrender the lead thereafter, picking up the win to force a Game 6.
For more on this thrilling Game 5, we had you covered with live updates, highlights, stats and more below.
Final: Boston Celtics 121, Miami Heat 108
In a tale of two halves, the Celtics have kept their season alive. Jayson Tatum (31 points) and Jaylen Brown (28 points) combined for 59 points to help Boston force a Game 6. The Heat would shoot 3-for-18 (16.7%) from 3 in the second half, being out-scored 70-50 and out-rebounded 28-12 to alter the outcome of this game.
Miami had six different players score in double figures, led by Goran Dragic’s 23 points and Jimmy Butler‘s strong stat line of 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Celtics’ second half charge.
The Celtics have not let their foot off the gas. A pair of Jaylen Brown 3s highlight’s their hot start to the fourth quarter as they’ve built their lead up to 16 at 107-91. Brown now has 24 points shooting 10-for-19 from the field and 4-for-8 from 3-point land.
From down seven at the half to up nine heading into the fourth quarter, the Celtics have life. It was a complete team effort from Boston to win the third quarter 41-25, but Jayson Tatum’s 17 points in the frame kept the foot on the gas. If not for a 13-point quarter from Goran Dragic, the Heat could be in much more trouble.
It’s a 20-3 run for the Celtics! They have come out of the half on fire to take a 71-63 lead with a Jayson Tatum 3-pointer forcing the Heat to take a timeout.
We have a ballgame on our hands! The Celtics look much more engaged to start the second half, locking up defensively and getting to the 50-50 balls that went Miami’s way all first half. Just like that, it’s a tied game at 60 with Boston taking a 9-2 run to start the third quarter.
The Heat hold a seven-point lead heading into the half behind Duncan Robinson’s 17 points. Jimmy Butler has kept the wheels turning on both ends of the floor with 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. For the Celtics, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have 10 points apiece, while Enes Kanter gave the team a strong 10 minutes in the first half, tallying eight points, four rebounds and two assists.
Something worth noting: Jayson Tatum and Kemba Walker each have three fouls here in the first half.
And Jayson Tatum gets his first 3-pointer of the game to fall! The Celtics still trail 52-47 with under two minutes to go in the half, struggling to come up with consecutive stops. Tatum now has 10 points in the first half.
Jaylen Brown is giving the Celtics a little bit of life. The star forward knocked down a 3, followed by an emphatic dunk to cut the deficit to seven at 44-37. He is the first Celtic in double figures with 10 points.
The Heat just want it more so far. Leading 40-28, Miami is playing hard on defence, getting to all the 50-50 balls and just out-hustling their opponent. Jimmy Butler is doing a little bit of everything with six points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal.
End of first quarter: Heat 26, Celtics 18
The Heat controlled the entire first quarter behind Duncan Robinson’s hot start. The sharpshooting forward already has 12 points through one frame, shooting 2-for-4 from 3-point range. The Celtics are struggling to get consistent looks on offence, shooting just 25.0% from both the field and beyond the arc. Jayson Tatum has been held to three points shooting 0-for-3 from the field.
The Heat extended that lead to 17-5, but the Celtics are charging back. An 8-0 run has Boston right back in it, trailing 17-13 with 3:10 to go in the first. They’re still shooting just 3-for-15 from the field and 3-for-10 from beyond the arc.
The Celtics are forced to take a timeout early in this one as the Heat jump out to an 11-5 lead in the first four minutes. Boston has made just one of their first nine field goal attempts with two turnovers – a less than ideal start for a team playing for their season.
OTTAWA – American receiver Justin Hardy will miss the Ottawa Redblacks’ regular-season finale Friday.
Hardy, who leads the CFL in receptions (97) and is second in receiving yards (1,343), was listed off Ottawa’s depth chart Thursday. Hardy was named Wednesday as the Redblacks’ nominee for the league’s outstanding player award.
American Andrew Miller will start in Hardy’s place.
Ottawa (8-7-1) concludes its regular season hosting the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (7-10). The Redblacks have already clinched third in the East and will visit the Toronto Argonauts (10-7) in the division semifinal Nov. 2.
Hamilton has been eliminated from playoff contention.
Incumbent Dru Brown is listed as Ottawa’s starting quarterback.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.
BOLOGNA, Italy (AP) — AC Milan’s weekend match at Bologna in Italy’s top soccer league has been postponed, Bologna officials announced Thursday following extensive flooding in the central Italian city.
The Serie A match had been scheduled for Saturday.
Bologna is the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region, large parts of which have been hard hit by torrential rains and bad weather for days.
The game was not immediately rescheduled.
“Following the flood that affected Bologna, intense work is underway to clean up the situation,” the city of Bologna said while announcing the game postponement on X.
BASEL, Switzerland – Canada’s Denis Shapovalov advanced to the quarterfinals of the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) win over Roberto Bautista Agut on Thursday.
Shapovalov used a strong service game to overcome the Spanish veteran for the win at the ATP 500 event in just under one hour 40 minutes.
The 25-year-old from Richmond Hill, Ont., fired 18 aces, including one to set up match point in the second-set tiebreaker, and won 79 per cent of first-serves and 63 per cent of second-serve points.
Shapovalov, a former top-10 player on the ATP Tour, entered this year’s Swiss Indoors ranked 95th and will appear in just his second quarterfinal of the season.
He improved to 3-0 against Bautista Agut, who he beat in July en route to a quarterfinal appearance in Washington.
Shapovalov will next face the winner of a match scheduled for later Thursday between defending champion Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal and France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.
