Jayson Tatum registered 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists to help Boston Celtics notch a 100-96 victory over hosts Miami Heat to win Game Seven of the Eastern Conference finals and reach the NBA Finals.
Marcus Smart added 24 points and nine rebounds, and Jaylen Brown also scored 24 points, as the Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010. Grant Williams added 11 points for Boston.
Tatum was named the conference finals MVP.
Jimmy Butler recorded 35 points and nine rebounds to lead the Heat. Bam Adebayo added 25 points and 11 rebounds, and Kyle Lowry had 15 points and seven rebounds.
Butler missed a three-point attempt with 16.6 seconds left that would have given Miami the lead.
The Celtics will face Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals - Game One is Friday at San Francisco.
Boston led wire-to-wire to end a streak of five straight losses in opportunities to clinch an NBA Finals berth.
The Heat, which trailed by 17 early in the second quarter and by 16 late in the second, pulled within 82-79, after Adebayo and Butler opened the fourth quarter with baskets, but Boston countered with eight straight points, with Smart's floater making it an 11-point cushion with 6m 36s left.
Smart's two free throws elevated the lead to 98-85 with 3m 35s remaining. Miami suddenly came alive, as Lowry, Max Strus and Victor Oladipo scored baskets to cut the deficit to seven.
Lowry's lay-up with one minute left pulled the Heat within 98-93 and Strus followed with a three-pointer to cut it two with 50.7s left.
Miami had a chance to move ahead, but Butler's ill-fated three-pointer bounced off the rim and Smart made two free throws with 11.4 s left to give Boston the game-ending four-point lead.
Miami's Tyler Herro (groin) returned from a three-game absence and was scoreless in seven minutes. Boston shot 41.2 percent from the field, including 11 of 32 from three-point range.
The Heat made 42 percent of their shots and were a shaky 6-of-30 from behind the arc.
Brown scored 15 and Tatum added 13, as the Celtics held a 55-49 halftime lead. Butler scored 24 in the half for Miami.
Boston sprinted out of the gates with leads of 12-3 and 24-9. After the Heat awoke with eight straight points, the Celtics finished the quarter with eight of their own to take a 32-17 lead into the second quarter.
Brown's basket to start the second gave Boston a 17-point lead and the advantage was 53-38, after Tatum connected on a three-pointer with 2m 36s left, but Miami finished strongly with an 11-2 burst to trail by six at the break.
The Celtics pushed the lead to 72-58 on Smart's three-pointer with 6m 46s left in the third quarter. Miami again cut down its deficit and trailed 82-75 entering the final stanza.
Reuters
