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The Miami Heat − with their playoff experience and understanding of what it takes to win playoff games − took care of the New York Knicks in six games.
The Heat eliminated the Knicks 96-92 in Game 6 Friday in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. Jimmy Butler had 24 points, eight rebounds and four assists, and Bam Adebayo had 23 points and nine rebounds. Kyle Lowry chipped in 11 points, nine assists, three steals and one block off the bench.
New York’s Jalen Brunson committed a turnover with 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and two Butler free throws extended Miami’s lead to 94-90.
The fifth-seeded Knicks were exposed by the eighth-seeded Heat, who become just the second No. 8 seed in NBA history to reach the conference finals. The 1999 New York Knicks did it and reached the Finals, although that happened in a 50-game, lockout-shortened season.
The Heat, who beat top-seeded Milwaukee in the first round, will play the winner of the Philadelphia-Boston series for a trip to the NBA Finals. Game 7 of Sixers-Celtics is Sunday in Boston.
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Brunson was fantastic again with 41 points. He didn’t have enough help.
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Here’s how the eighth seed advanced to the conference finals:
Jimmy Butler stars in the playoffs
Butler is an All-NBA player. He is also an All-NBA playoffs kind of player. Playoff Jimmy brings it this time of year.
Butler is averaging 31.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists and shooting 52.7% from the field and 36.1% on 3s through two rounds. Against the Knicks, Butler put up 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists and shot 43.2% from the field. He gets to the free throw line, gets teammates involved, makes winning plays and works hard defensively.
He missed the second game against New York, and the Heat were 4-1 against the Knicks with him in the lineup.
Butler scored at least 25 points in three of his five games against New York.
Heat defense stifles Knicks
Miami has the No. 1 defense in the conference semifinals, allowing just 108.7 points per 100 possessions, which is one point better than No. 2 Boston.
The Knicks’ offense has shortcomings, and those were made worse against Miami’s defense. The Heat weren’t an offensive force but scored enough and held the Knicks to 38% shooting and limited Julius Randle and RJ Barrett Friday.
Randle was well below his regular-season scoring average and shooting percentage against the Heat. He had just 15 points on 3-for-14 shooting, including 1-for-7 on 3-pointers, and Barrett was just 1-for-10 for 11 points in Game 6.
Role players deliver for Heat
Max Strus. Gabe Vincent. Caleb Martin. Duncan Robinson. Alonzo Highsmith. Cody Zeller. The Heat received valuable minutes from those players, and Strus, Vincent and Martin averaged at least 10 points against the Knicks.
Miami does a great job finding players who fit its system. The Heat believe in their player development program and turn players who were ignored or discarded into prominent contributors.
Throw in Kevin Love and Lowry, both with championship experience, and it was more than the Knicks had to offer.
Strus had 16 points in Game 4. Lowry 15 in Game 4. Strus 19 in Game 3. Lowry 14 in Game 3. Love nine rebounds, four assists in Game 3. Zeller six rebounds, six points in Game 3. Vincent 20 points in Game 1. Strus had 14 in Game 6.
The Heat did the little things
The Heat are No. 1 in the conference semifinals in deflections, loose basketballs recovered and charges drawn per game. It’s emblematic of an Erik Spoelstra-coached team.
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