MIAMI _ None of this, of course, makes any sense. The horrendous 25-point Sunday loss to the Indiana Pacers and then this snapping of the Boston Celtics' 16-game winning streak.
Ladies and gentlemen, all the wonder of your maddeningly inconsistent 2017-18 Miami Heat, who at least will be able to enjoy a festive Thanksgiving after Wednesday's 104-98 victory at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Finding a way to finally maximize a third quarter, and then holding off a team that had made eight fourth-quarter comebacks during the 16-game winning streak, the Heat survived second-half foul trouble behind a pair of late Dion Waiters 3-pointers.
With Goran Dragic scoring 27 points, Waiters closing with 26 points and six assists, and Hassan Whiteside securing 10 rebounds, the Heat had more than enough to offset Kyrie Irving's 23 points.
The Heat found themselves over the limit for the balance of the game with 9:24 left, as the Celtics parading themselves to the line. Three of those fouls at the start of the fourth quarter were by Kelly Olynyk.
By the midpoint of the fourth quarter, what had been an 18-point Heat lead earlier in the game and a 14-point lead with 6:40 to play was down to 91-84 after a Jayson Tatum 3-pointer.
From there, a scrambled sequence led to a Jaylen Brown layup that pulled Boston within 91-86, with a Terry Rozier 3-pointer trimming the Heat lead to 91-89.
Then, after the Heat lead was sliced to one, Waiters bounced in a 3-pointer for a 94-90 Heat edge.
That was followed by a pair of missed Al Horford free throws, keeping the Heat lead at four.
And then, again, a Waiters 3-pointer, only to see Irving convert a layup on the other end, leaving the Heat up 97-92.
Waiters' next attempting, however, was an airball 3-pointer, followed, to the Heat's benefit by a Celtics turnover.
A tip-in by Whiteside made the Heat's lead 99-92 with 70 seconds left.
Irving came right back with a driving layup to trim Boston's deficit to 99-94, with the Heat holding on from there.
The Heat this time built on a lead in the third period, turning a 13-point halftime lead into a 79-63 advantage going into the fourth.
Foul trouble became a factor for the Heat in the third, first when Boston moved into the bonus with 7:15 left in the period and then when Josh Richardson was called for his fourth foul with 4:42 left in the quarter.
Richardson had an earlier testy moment in the third, when words were exchange with Irving following an Irving foul.
The Celtics trimmed what had been an 18-point deficit to eight early in the third period, a quarter when they had thrived and the Heat have flailed this season. But this time the Heat continually pushed back.
The Heat moved to an 18-point lead in the second period and went into the intermission up 54-41, with Dragic up to 20 points and Waiters to six assists at that stage.
The Heat were able to survive 10 first-half turnovers, with Boston able to only convert them to three points, all from the line.
The Celtics shot .333 in the first half, including 1 of 7 from Al Horford.
Earlier, the Heat pushed to a 27-16 lead entering the second period, limiting the Celtics to .318 first-quarter shooting.
With Marcus Morris dealing with knee pain, the Celtics moved to a big lineup, with Aron Baynes opening at center and Horford shifted to power forward.
That had a more physical inside challenge for Whiteside, with Justise Winslow faced with Horford's size.
It was the second game of the three-game season series and the second and final Celtics visit of the season.
The Celtics won the first meeting 96-90 Oct. 28, behind 24 points from Irving, on a night they limited the Heat to 43-percent shooting and forced 19 turnovers. The Heat were without Whiteside in the loss.
The Heat entered having lost eight in a row to the Celtics, including their previous five home games.
The game ends a two-game homestand for the Heat and came before a four-game trip that opens Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Heat were coming off Sunday's' 120-95 loss to the Pacers, their most-lopsided loss of the season.
The Celtics were coming off Monday's 110-102 overtime victory in Dallas, with Irving closing with 47 points.
