Balanced Celtics smash Heat to tie Eastern Conference finals

NEW YORK - An efficient performance from the Boston Celtics saw them crush the Miami Heat 127-102 on Thursday to tie the best-of-seven NBA Eastern Conference finals 1-1.

Jayson Tatum of the Celtics scored a team-high 27 points, while Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart contributed 24 points respectively to the dominant win. Jimmy Butler of the Heat notched a match-leading 29 points but lacked help from his teammates.

The Celtics set the tone in the early minutes as they made nine three-pointers from 11 attempts, storming a 27-6 run to lead the first quarter 35-24. They kept it rolling in the second quarter to establish a 25-point lead by halftime, their largest first-half playoff lead on the road in franchise history.

The lopsided game saw the Celtics show great shooting performance, as they scored 20 of 40 attempts from three-point range.

Though Butler tried to narrow the deficit by scoring 16 points in the third quarter, his teammate Bam Adebayo was not in the same rhythm, as the star center only attempted six shots, finishing with six points and nine rebounds.

Game 3 will be in Boston on Saturday.