Miami Heat advances to historic Conference Finals despite Brunson’s 41
Jalen Brunson notched 41 points in a Friday night special inside the Kaseya Center but it proved to not be enough to propel the New York Knicks to victory and extend the series to 7 games. Instead, the Heat put together a grueling defensive performance that ultimately ensured they came out on top, finishing 96-92, and will now rest in preparation for the Conference finals.
This marks the 3rd time in 4 seasons that the Miami Heat is heading to the conference finals and also the first time since 1999 that an eighth seed has advanced to the conference finals. With this win, it also means that the Heat is the first play-in team to advance to the conference finals since its inclusion in the NBA season.
Jimmy Butler had a soft night by his standards, despite leading the Heat in points, after taking 22 shots to tally just 24 points. But it was his defense that was important.
Jimmy led the Heat with 4 deflections and 2 pt contesting along with loose balls recovered to ensure that the Miami Heat came out victorious and ensured a final date with the winner of the Boston/Philadelphia series.
Bam Adebayo helped the Heat by adding 23 points and 9 rebounds while Lowry added 11 points and Strus added 14.
The Knicks stayed late in the game, with Brunson hitting a 3-point shot to bring the game to 84-87 in under 4 minutes. Josh Hart would make a cutting lay-up to cut the lead to 2 points bringing the game to 90-92 before Butler and Strus made 2 free throws each to close out the game.
