Tatum has 26 points as Celtics withstand late Heat rally

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MIAMI, Feb 12, (AP): Jayson Tatum had 26 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists and the Boston Celtics withstood a late rally to beat the Miami Heat 110-106.
Kristaps Porzingis had 25 points, Jaylen Brown had 20 points and Jrue Holiday scored 15 for Boston, which hit 16 of 39 3-point attempts.

“Today was fun, we have a lot of history with this team. Last time we came here we smacked them, so we knew it would be a closer game,” Tatum said of Boston’s 33-point win in Miami Jan. 25. “They came to play and we enjoy being part of games like that. Everybody’s being competitive.”
The Celtics have won all three matchups with the Heat this season and have won six of the last seven games against them. The loss came in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals last season, when Boston forced the deciding game after losing the first three.
“Late-game execution, you’ve got to set the table,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “I think our guys did that.”

Tyler Herro had 22 of his 24 points in the second half, Bam Adebayo scored 22 and Duncan Robinson and Caleb Martin finished with 15 points each for the Heat – who were short-handed to start the game and even more so by the end.

The Heat were without leading scorer Jimmy Butler, who was granted a leave of absence because of the death of a family member.
Miami lost Terry Rozier and Josh Richardson to injuries. Rozier, who finished with 13 points, landed awkwardly on his right leg after driving to the basket midway through the third quarter, clearly favoring his knee. Both players will have MRI exams on Monday, coach Erik Spoelstra said.

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