It was a fine night’s work for the Miami Heat and the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday, after victories in their respective play-in tournament elimination games against the Chicago Bulls and Sacramento Kings. The Heat can now look forward to a mouthwatering clash against the Boston Celtics, while the Pelicans have an eye-catching tie against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Miami Heat sealed the final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs with a 112-91 win over the Chicago Bulls, setting up a tantalising clash with the Boston Celtics.
Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 24 and 21 points respectively to defeat the Bulls in the final play-in tournament elimination game.
DeMar DeRozan top scored for the Bulls who top took 22 points for Bulls, while Coby White added a further 13 on a disappointing night for the Illinois outfit. Miami went on a 19-0 run in the first quarter, and 14-0 in the second, which ultimately proved decisive in beating the Bulls in the East play-in for a second successive year.
That 19-0 run also matched the Heat’s longest consecutive run of points all year and ultimately turned the match in their favour after recovering from 11-6 down to take a 25-11 lead.
The Floridians are the No. 8 seed for a consecutive year and will hope that history repeats itself after progressing all the way through to the 2023 NBA Finals. Speaking after the victory, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said in quotes published by nba.com: “I have an appreciation for the things you can’t buy, the things that you have to earn.
“We had to earn this. You can’t influence it. You can’t pay money for it. You actually have to collectively come together to earn it – and we had to do it the hard way, just to get this first ticket punched for the invitation to this dance.”
They face a daunting task ahead against a Celtics side that has claimed an NBA-best 64 victories this season, but Jaquez is confident of causing an upset.
“Ultimately, we’ve just got to bring that Miami Heat culture and that toughness,” Jaquez explained.
“We’ve got two games in Boston. We’ve got to set the tone extremely early, impose our will on them and make it real physical.” Elsewhere, the New Orleans Pelicans took the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference playoffs with a 105-98 win over the Sacramento Kings.Brandon Ingram top scored with 24 points, while Jonas Valanciunas registered 19 points and 12 rebounds in their play-in tournament elimination game with the Californians. The win was all the more impressive given that the Pelicans had to cope without the absence of leading scorer Zion Williamson, who missed the game with a left hamstring strain.
“We deserved it. That’s how we felt coming into this game,” said Larry Nance Jr of the Pelicans.
“We deserve to be in the playoffs. You don’t win 49 games by accident.” Meanwhile, De’Aaron Fox amassed 35 points for the Kings and Domantas Sabonis registered a further 23 points and 14 rebounds, as Kings coach Mike Brown reflected on “a tough night” for his side.
“You get 34 points from your bench, it’s a great night for them, a tough night for us,” said Brown.
“We were a little passive offensively and not all of us were aggressive with our play tonight.
“We have to be able to get the ball in the paint,” added Brown, whose team was outscored 58-44 inside and missed seven of 22 free throws. “You’ve got to be able to finish and you’ve got to get to the free throw line and convert.”