MIAMI — From being the eighth-seed in the NBA Eastern Conference and needing to go through the play-in tournament to even make it to the playoffs, the Miami Heat’s improbable postseason run marches on.
Jimmy Butler scored 27 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished 10 assists to lead the Heat over the Knicks in Game 4 of their semifinals series Monday night (Tuesday AM in Manila) at a jampacked Kaseya Center in downtown Miami.
With All-Star center Bam Adebayo manufacturing 23 points and 13 rebounds, Miami put the clamps on defense and held the Knicks to just 48.7 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from long distance. The Heat dominated the boards, 44-35, and forced New York to 16 turnovers.
The Heat now leads the best-of-7 series at 3-1 and could advance to the East Conference Finals with a Game 5 win on Thursday morning (Manila time) at the Madison Square Garden in New York.
As with their other wins in this series, the Heat showed their depth on the offensive end to stymie New York.
Max Strus hits four 3s for 16 points while Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin combined for 25 points off the bench.
“It was great that we were able to hold home court. But we know we have a task in New York,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters at his post-game press conference.
The Knicks, seeded fifth in the East, will be a handful on their home floor. They went 23-18 in the Garden during the regular season.
Jalen Brunson tried to will the Knicks to a Game 4 steal with 32 points and 11 assists but his effort fell short against a Heat team that dictated the pace on both ends of the floor.
Julius Randle and RJ Barrett combined for 44 points for New York.
