Heat rallies behind Butler’s 56 points to take 3-1 lead in playoff series

Jimmy Butler lifted his depleted team on his wide shoulders on Monday and delivered a Jordanesque performance, unlike much of anything witnessed in decades of pro sports in South Florida.

Butler didn’t merely score 56 points; he spearheaded an electrifying late rally, from 11 down with 7:33 left, to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, 119-114, on Monday in a playoff performance for the ages at Kaseya Center.

Butler’s 56 points — the most ever scored by a Heat player in a playoff game and tied for the fourth most by any player in a playoff game — lifted Miami to a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 playoff series.

And it left the Milwaukee Bucks stunned and one loss from elimination.

“We are witnessing a guy playing at a level of basketball not many guys can get to,” Kyle Lowry said of Butler.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a triple-double by early in the fourth quarter, and Brook Lopez used his height advantage and deft touch to score 36.

But Butler scored 21 in the fourth, and the Heat outscored the Bucks 41-25 in that final quarter.

“Some of my bad shots went in,” Butler cracked. “That was the difference of the game.”

Butler has had brilliant games before, but nothing quite like this. He shot 19 for 28 from the field and 15 for 18 from the line and added nine rebounds for good measure.

“We deserved to win because he played incredible,” Bam Adebayo said. “He’s in a groove right now. He’s one of those players that in the playoffs, he can turn it on.”

Game 5 is 9:30 p.m. Wednesday in Milwaukee, and Game 6 will be Friday night in Miami. If necessary, Game 7 would be Sunday in Milwaukee.

With one more Heat win, Miami would become just the fifth eighth seed to beat a No. 1 seed.

Miami trailed 89-78 after three quarters, but Butler spearheaded a 13-0 Heat run that pushed the Heat ahead 102-101 — its first lead of the night — with 3:17 left, capped by a Butler dunk off a pass from Adebayo, who stole the ball from Antetokounmpo at midcourt.

Caleb Martin, Kyle Lowry, Butler and Adebayo were dynamic defensively in that run.

But Antetokounmpo drove past Adebayo for a basket and foul on the ensuing sequence, and he hit the free throw to put Milwaukee ahead 104-102.

Martin then hit a three, his second three in the final minutes, to put the Heat back ahead. Jrue Holiday hit a three on the other end, pushing Milwaukee back ahead.

Lowry then threw a pass out of bounds, believing Duncan Robinson would be in a spot that he vacated two seconds earlier.

After a missed three by Khris Middleton, Butler hit two free throws. Lopez dunked on the other end, but Butler hit a three to put the Heat up one at 110-109, with 1:20 left.

Butler then nailed a 22-foot jumper with 58 seconds left, stretching the lead to 112-109.

After Lowry stole the ball from Holiday, Butler drove for a foul and hit two free throws with 47 seconds remaining. Antetokounmpo then missed a layup with 37 seconds left, and Milwaukee never again got closer than four.

“We got stops and we continued to play with pace,” Lowry said. “We got pressure. At the start of the game, they were physical. In the fourth quarter, we got physical and got our mojo on the defensive end going.”

Besides Butler’s 21-point fourth quarter, the Heat got 10 points from Martin in the fourth quarter and excellent defense from Lowry, Martin and Adebayo. Martin also chipped in nine rebounds, and the Heat has outscored the Bucks by 75 points when he has been on the court in this series.

Butler was dazzling, using his textbook footwork to score 22 of the Heat’s first 28 points and then scoring nine straight points late. And Butler did most of his damage against two exceptional defenders, Antetokounmpo and Holiday.

Butler has been extraordinary in several previous playoff series, but his work in this series might be his all-time best. He entered averaging 30 points on 60 percent shooting in the first three games, and topped that in Game 4.

Butler has scored 40 points in seven playoff games, all with the Heat.

“I think he’s the best closer in the game,” Kevin Love said.

Antetokoumpo, who missed most of Game 1 and the previous two games with a bruised lower back, scored seven early points to push the Bucks to a 15-5 lead.

Repelling multiple Heat defenders, Antetokounmpo drove for many of his 26 points, while delivering 10 rebounds and 13 assists. When the Heat tried a zone, Antetokounmpo exposed that too, gliding into a soft spot. This was his third career playoff triple double. But he had six turnovers, including two in the fourth.

Miami rallied late despite Lopez having his way for most of the night.

With a four-inch height advantage, Lopez outscored Adebayo, 36-15, and outrebounded him 11-8. The 7-1 Lopez also did a lot of his damage shooting over 6-8 Kevin Love and some against 6-11 Cody Zeller. And when the Heat switched defensively, the height disparity was even more pronounced.

The start was ominous for Adebayo; Lopez blocked his dunk attempt 53 seconds into the game.

Adebayo picked up his second foul 3:28 into the game and went to the bench for the rest of the first quarter. Adebayo’s second foul was an unnecessary one, on a reach-in on Grayson Allen.

After Lopez blocked another one of his shots early in the third, Adebayo finally got untracked, scoring nine in the quarter.

The Heat won despite a 6-for-16 shooting night from Adebayo and a scoreless game from Max Strus, who missed his only shot in 17 minutes.

With Victor Oladipo shelved by a torn patellar tendon, Erik Spoelstra gave early and significant first half playing time to Haywood Highsmith, who hasn’t been a part of the Heat’s rotation in weeks.

He was the Heat’s first substitution, after Adebayo left with his second foul, and offered his usual measure of defensive resistance, but not much offensively (three points in 14 minutes).

After the Bucks jumped to a 17-5 lead, Butler took control. He shot 9 for 10 in his 22-point first quarter, including 2 for 2 on threes. By comparison, the rest of the Heat scored six points in the quarter on 2-for-9 shooting.

Butler’s 22 points were the most he has ever scored in a quarter and tied Devin Booker and Michael Porter Jr. for the most points in the first quarter of a playoff game since 1996-97.

Butler also tied Dwyane Wade’s record for the highest scoring quarter in Heat playoff history.

What’s more, per ESPN, Butler became the fifth player over the past 25 postseasons to score 20 consecutive points for his team in a playoff game. Tracy McGrady (2021), LeBron James (2007), Kobe Bryant (2010) and Ja Morant (last Saturday) also did that.

After two Butler free throws tied the score at 38, the Bucks unleashed a 9-0 run and led 57-50 at the half. Butler shot 0 for 3 in a two-point second quarter, and the Heat shot 7 for 24 overall in the quarter.

Butler scored 11 in the third — and Adebayo finally showed an offensive pulse. But the Bucks extended their lead to 89-78 after three.

The Heat then staged that maniacal, inspiring comeback, stunning the Bucks and leaving Miami one win from the second round.

“I feel like Pat [Riley] and Spo wanted me here for a reason,” Butler said. “The job’s not done. We got one more to get.”