The Takeaways From The Miami Heat's Victory In Game 1 Against Celtics

The Heat lead 1-0 in best-of-7 series in Eastern Conference finals

The Miami Heat used a huge second-half run to defeat the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Although the Celtics were playing without starters Al Horford and Marcus Smart, the Heat's victory was impressive because of how they erased a 13-point, first-half with a huge third quarter. 

Here are the major takeaways from the game:

-Jimmy Butler shines again. Butler, who is averaging 29 points during the playoffs, had 41 points. It is his second 40-point game in the postseason. He also showed up on the defensive end, recording four steals and three blocks.

- Free throws. The Heat found their way to the foul line continuously, making a postseason-high 30 free throws. 

-Limiting the Celtics’ 3-pointers. The Celtics, who are averaging 14 three-pointers in the playoffs, were held to 11 on 32 percent shooting.

-Scoring in transition. The Heat had 13 fastbreak points, which is topped their postseason average in 11.  

-Tyler Herro comes through. Herro had 18 points last off the bench. However, he is still struggling from beyond the arc, shooting 26 percent.

The Miami Heat will look to take a 2-0 series lead over the Boston Celtics on Thursday.

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​​Cory Nelson is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson