Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (R) scored 24 of his game-high 45 points in the second half of a win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday in Miami. Photo by Justin Lane/EPA-EFE
MIAMI, April 19 (UPI) — Jimmy Butler poured in a playoff career-high 45 points to lead the Miami Heat to a win and a 2-0 series lead on the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday at FTX Arena in Miami.
“This time of the year, he has to go get buckets and be ‘Jimmy Buckets,'” Heat guard Kyle Lowry told reporters after the 115-105 Game 2 win.
“He knows what he’s doing and knows his spots. Making 3-pointers takes his game to another level.”
Butler made 15 of 25 shots, including four 3-pointers, and scored 24 points in the second half.
“Last night, I was having a conversation with [teammate] P.J. Tucker,” Butler said. “He told me to go out there and score and make sure that we win. [Assistant] coach Chris Quinn said the same thing when I was shooting in the practice gym.
“I went out and did just that.”
The Heat outscored the Hawks 20-13 off fast breaks, 21-19 off turnovers and led by as many as 16 points. The first-round, best-of-seven game Eastern Conference series will now head to Atlanta.
“It’s kind of unsaid,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of Butler taking over the game. “It’s like ‘get the ball to J.B.’ You can see it with our play calls, but it’s not like I had to make them.
“The ball was going to him.”
Hawks guard Kevin Huerter sank a 3-pointer 36 seconds in, but the top-seeded Heat responded with a 10-0 run. The No. 8 Hawks used a 9-2 run to level the score, but trailed 26-25 to start the second. Hawks guard Trae Young totaled 10 points over the first 12 minutes.
The lead changed hands 10 more times in the second. Butler poured in a dozen points in the quarter. He gave the Heat a 56-54 halftime lead with an And-1 conversion just before quarter expired. Young scored eight points in the frame.
The Heat started the third quarter with an 8-2 run and never looked back. Butler added another 15 points in the frame and the Heat outscored the Hawks 31-22 to take an 87-76 lead into the fourth.
The Hawks attempted to rally down the stretch, cutting the Heat lead to four points midway through the final quarter. Butler and the Heat responded with a late 8-0 run to seal the victory.
“He was just really assertive,” Spoelstra said of Butler. “He just has a knack for making whatever play is needed for your team at whatever moment.”
Heat guards Tyler Herro and Max Strus scored 15 and 14 points, respectively, in the win.
Young, who scored just eight points in Game 1, totaled 25 points in Game 2. Bogdan Bogdanovic paced the Hawks with 29 points. Hawks center John Collins totaled 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Hawks host the Heat in Game 3 at 7 p.m. EDT Friday at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. That game airs on ESPN. Game 4 will tip off at the same time Sunday in Atlanta.
“Atlanta has been bringing the energy this past month going into the playoffs,” Young said.
“We are ready to get back home and get back to work. Game 4 is going to be loud. It’s going to be fun.”
The winner of the series will face the No. 4 Philadelphia 76ers or No. 5 Toronto Raptors in the second round. The 76ers lead that series 2-0.
