NBA: Jimmy Butler guides Heat to 3-1 series lead over Knicks
Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat celebrates hitting a three-point shot against the New York Knicks during game four of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Kaseya Center on May 08, 2023 in Miami, Florida. Eric Espada/Getty Images/AFP
Jimmy Butler produced 27 points and 10 assists on Monday night as the host Miami Heat defeated the New York Knicks 109-101 to take a 3-1 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Miami, the eighth seed in the East, can clinch the best-of-seven series with a win on Wednesday in New York.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Heat also got 23 points and a game-high 13 rebounds from Bam Adebayo.
Miami outhustled fifth-seeded New York throughout, winning the offensive-rebound battle 13-8. The Heat also had a 22-15 edge in points off turnovers, and Miami was quicker to loose balls.
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said his team was now reaping dividends from their resilience forged in the regular season, when they were forced to battle through the play-in tournament to reach the playoffs.
Article continues after this advertisement“We found the value in the grind of the regular season, the grind and the struggle,” Spoelstra said.
“Without that struggle — where we had to find different solutions to win, with different guys stepping up for these kind of moments — if we didn’t do that in the regular season you have zero chance to be able to do that in the playoffs.
“There’s nothing easy about the regular season, and nothing easy about the postseason. But if you can come to grips with that it can make you collectively stronger.”
Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat dunks the basketball during game four of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New York Knicks at Kaseya Center on May 08, 2023 in Miami, Florida. The Heat won the game 109-101. Eric Espada/Getty Images/AFP
Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 32 points and 11 assists, both game highs. Brunson’s output included a corner 3-pointer in the second quarter that went in off the glass.
Knicks guard/forward RJ Barrett added 24 points. Julius Randle, who fouled out with 3:08 left in the game, finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, but he also committed a game-high six turnovers.
New York’s Immanuel Quickley, who finished second in voting for NBA Sixth Man of the Year, missed the game due to a sprained left ankle.
His absence resulted in several Knicks changes. Quentin Grimes returned to the starting lineup, Josh Hart resumed his key bench role and Miles McBride was added to the rotation.
Miami led 31-30 after the first quarter as Kyle Lowry made a mid-range jumper with 0.5 seconds left. New York shot 60 percent in the period, going 3-for-7 on 3-point attempts. Miami hit 54.5 percent of its shot attempts, including 4 of 9 from deep.
Jimmy Butler (26 PTS, 10 AST, 2 BLK) comes up big as the @MiamiHEAT win Game 4 to secure a 3-1 lead!
Game 5: Wednesday, 7:30pm/et on TNT pic.twitter.com/Tl2vJpC4md
— NBA (@NBA) May 9, 2023
Miami led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter before settling for a 56-48 halftime advantage. Adebayo led all first-half scorers with 16 points. For the Knicks, Brunson had 13 points and Randle had 12. Miami outshot New York 50 percent to 28.6 percent in the second quarter.
New York again trailed by 11 in the third but cut its deficit to 90-81 by the period’s end. Butler had 11 points in the third, and Max Strus added eight of his 16 for Miami.
The Heat led throughout the fourth quarter, with the margin never falling below six points.
Miami shot 47.1 percent from the floor for the night. New York shot 48.7 percent, but the Knicks got nine fewer attempts due to turnovers and Miami’s offensive rebounds and relentless pursuit of the ball.
