Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Butler’s 30 points power Heat to 3-0 lead over Bucks with 115-100 victory
Giannis Antetokounmpo was pushing through the pain, his ankle not the same since a first-quarter misstep.
Jimmy Butler was pushing past anyone in his way, again working his way to the foul line.
And this Eastern Conference semifinal series yet again was going down to a final push, just as it had in the first two games.
The result? A familiar one, with a 115-100 Heat victory Friday night at Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex giving the Heat a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven series that continues (and possibly concludes) Sunday at 3:30 p.m. in Game 4.
No NBA team has overcome a 3-0 deficit in a playoff series.
Down 14 earlier, the Heat put together a 16-2 fourthquarter run to go up 96-93 midway through the fourth quarter.
From there, the Heat did as they did in Monday’s Game 1 victory, when they put the ball in Butler’s hands and he helped put it away ... with a little help from his friends.
A 3-pointer with 2:15 to play by Jae Crowder put the Heat up 107-100, with the Heat, unlike their shaky Wednesday Game 2 finish, putting it away comfortably from there.
Butler led the Heat with 30 points, shooting 14 of 19 from
the foul line. He was supported by a 20-point, 16-rebound double-double from center Bam Adebayo, as well as 17 points from Crowder, 15 from Goran Dragic and 13 from Tyler Herro.
Despite twisting his ankle early, Antetokounmpo energized the Bucks with 21 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists, but he also was 0 for 7 on 3-pointers and 7 of 12 from the foul line. Brook Lopez added 22 points for the Bucks and Khris Middleton 18.
Five degrees of Heat from Sunday’s game:
1. The Giannis factor: Antetokounmpo appeared to tweak his ankle when he stepped on Dragic’s foot early, but he remained in attack mode even as he struggled with his shooting.
While it hardly was a dominant performance, setting for more 3-point attempts than prudent, he still filled out the box score, including working his way to the foul line.
He also helped push the Bucks to a 14-point lead in a third period that ended with the Bucks up 87-75.
“Giannis got in the paint and got some easy ones and that created the separation,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said in his televised interview at the end of the third period.
Antetokounmpo attempted 12 free throws over the first three periods, a stage when the Heat had 15 as a team.
2. Three for all: This time the Bucks’ defense stepped up in the paint, forcing the Heat to the perimeter.
That had the Heat for the first 30 minutes attempting twice as many 3-point shots as twos.
After Crowder shot 4 of 12 on threes in Game 2, Spoelstra challenged him to shoot even more. This time there were eight Crowder 3-point attempts by halftime, 10 going into the fourth.
The Heat closed 18 of 47 from beyond the arc.
3. Changing times: The Heat were without backup center Kelly Olynyk due to a bruised right knee.
It was the first time Olynyk missed a game this season due to injury. He was held out of six games during the regular season due to coach’s decision.
That had Meyers Leonard making his 2020 playoff debut, entering with 5 minutes left in the opening period.
There also had been concern about Andre Iguodala being sidelined, after spraining his right ankle in Game 2, but he also entered in the first period, converting a 3-pointer on his first attempt.
The Heat wound up 10 deep in the first quarter, when Adebayo was called for his second foul with 31.4 seconds to play in that opening period. That’s when Derrick Jones Jr. entered, following Leonard, Herro, Iguodala and Kendrick Nunn off the bench.
4. Foul issues: Spoelstra went into the game saying the Heat had to cut down on their fouls. Instead, Adebayo, Dragic and Iguodala had three apiece by the intermission.
That had the Bucks at 9 of 14 from the line at halftime, compared to 5 of 6 for the Heat. The Heat were called for 14 first-half fouls to six for the Bucks, contributing to why the Bucks lead 57-50 at the intermission.
5. Sixth for sixth: Dragic finished sixth in the voting released Friday for the NBA Sixth Man Award that went to Los Angeles Clippers big man Montrezl Harrell.
“I think Goran definitely should have been considered for Sixth Man of the Year,” Spoelstra said, with Dragic a reserve during the entire regular season, before becoming a playoff starter. “But, who cares? Our guys are contributing to this team.”
It effectively leaves the Heat without a postseason award, with MVP expected to go to Antetokounmpo.
“I just think a lot of the contributions that our guys made this year just went unnoticed,” Spoelstra said, “because I don’t think the general public or media were following or paying attention to our guys.”