BOSTON (AP) —
Derrick White had 24 points, including six 3-pointers, and the
Boston Celtics dominated the Miami Heat 110-97 on Thursday night in
Game 5 to extend the Eastern Conference finals.

Marcus Smart
had 23 points and five steals. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown
finished with 21 points apiece as the Celtics claimed their second
straight win and trimmed Miami’s series lead to 3-2.

It keeps
alive Boston’s hopes of becoming the first team in NBA history to
overcome a 3-0 deficit to win a series. Teams previously in that
position are 0-150 all-time.

Game 6 is
Saturday in Miami.

A day after
the Florida Panthers punched the franchise’s first ticket to the
Stanley Cup Finals since 1996, for the second straight game the
Heat were denied a spot in the NBA Finals.

Duncan
Robinson led the Heat with 18 points. Bam Adebayo added 16 points
and eight rebounds. Jimmy Butler had 14 points, five rebounds and
five assists but sat out the final 9:47 of the game. Caleb Martin
finished with 14 points.

It was
Butler’s lowest-scoring game of the playoffs. He had 16 points in
Game 3, a blowout win by Miami.

Miami never
led and had 16 turnovers.

Boston
entered the day just 4-5 at TD Garden this postseason. But with a
raucous home crowd behind them, the Celtics thrived on their
energy.

They dove for
loose balls, outfought Miami for rebounds and found each other for
layups and dunks in transition as they built as much as 20 points
in the first half.

The Heat cut
into it, but Boston kept knocking down 3s and grew its edge as high
as 96-72 in the fourth quarter.

Boston’s fans
reignited a “Beat the Heat!” chant that hadn’t been prevalent since
Game 1.

The Heat
started Kyle Lowry at point guard after Gabe Vincent was ruled out
with a sprained left ankle earlier in the day. It was Lowry’s first
start since Feb. 2.

Vincent, the
Heat’s third-leading scorer this postseason, got hurt late in
Miami’s Game 4 loss when he landed awkwardly while trying to save a
loose ball near the Heat bench.

His presence
was missed as Miami struggled early on the offensive end, swarmed
by a Celtics’ defense that forced the Heat into 10 first-half
turnovers that led to 17 Boston points. Lowry played 31 minutes,
scored five points and finished with four turnovers.

TIP-INS

Heat: Were
outscored 13-0 in second-half points in the opening 24 minutes.

Celtics: Al
Horford added six points and 11 rebounds. … The Celtics took a
61-44 edge into halftime. … Boston’s first turnover of the game
didn’t come until the 8:16 mark of the second quarter.

FAST
START

The Celtics
got the fast start they had hoped for in front of their home
crowd.

Smart
stripped Adebayo on Miami’s opening possession, igniting a fast
break and layup on the other end by Tatum.

Then, with
the game tied at 4, Tatum got free in the lane for a monstrous
two-handed dunk. He hung on the rim afterward and continued his
celebration when he landed, leading to a technical foul.

It didn’t
stop the Celtics’ momentum, as their first-quarter lead grew as
high as 23-7. Boston ended the period with a 35-20 lead, punctuated
by a 3-pointer by White at the buzzer.

Tatum had 12
points in the opening 12 minutes, with the Celtics outscoring the
Heat 21-6 from beyond the arc. Boston hit 7 of its 12 attempts.

VIP WATCH

Celtics Hall
of Famer Paul Pierce, NCAA president Charlie Baker and New England
Patriots Matt Slater and Devin McCourty were among several
celebrities in the Garden.