MIAMI _ The bottom of the Eastern Conference playoff race has proven more forgiving than the Boston Celtics.
So while the Miami Heat fell out of a playoff seed, to No. 9 in the Eastern Conference race, with Wednesday night's 112-102 loss to the Celtics at AmericanAirlines Arena, their second loss to Boston in as many games, they not only still stand within a half game of the No. 7 playoff seed in the East, but within a game within No. 6.
What the Heat no longer control is their playoff destiny, winning out offers no assurance of a postseason berth, due to their poor standing in the NBA's tiebreakers.
And only four games remain.
The Heat had another balanced scoring effort, boosted by double-doubles from centers Hassan Whiteside and Bam Adebayo, despite the two splitting the minutes in the middle.
Whiteside closed with 18 points and 15 rebounds, Adebayo with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Guard Dion Waiters led the Heat with 21 points.
Forward Gordon Hayward led the Celtics with 25 points, with guard Kyrie Irving adding 23 and forward Al Horford 21.
A turning point came when Heat guard Goran Dragic missed an open 3-point attempt and the Celtics busted out for a layup and 100-94 lead with 4:56 to play. From there, a Hayward 3-pointer later made it 103-96.
The Heat trailed 31-29 at the end of the first period, 53-49 at halftime and 83-81 going into the fourth quarter.
