Kemba’s season-high 36 points not enough as Heat outlast Celtics

The loss of All-Star Jaylen Brown for the season due to a torn wrist ligament was sure to affect the Celtics’ expectations going forward to the play-in tournament and potentially the playoffs, and it showed tonight in the first game of his absence.

The Boston Celtics fell for the second consecutive game to the Miami Heat, 129-121, as Boston loses their third game in a row and seventh game in their last 10.

Miami led by six at halftime and continued to build on that momentum early in the third quarter as they jumped out to a double digit lead and never looked back, led by a hot streak by Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro following the loss of star Jimmy Butler in the second half due to being poked in the eye.

Kemba Walker led the way for Boston with a season-high 36 points on 14-of-27 shooting along with 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

Jayson Tatum was back to his All-Star form tonight, finishing with 33 points. 8 rebounds, and 6 assists on 12-of-21 shooting and 5-of-8 from downtown.

Evan Fournier remained in the starting lineup due to the loss of Jaylen Brown, scoring 20 points and dishing out 8 assists.

For the Celtics, they’re looking the play-in tournament dead in the eyes, currently sitting as the 7-seed in the Eastern Conference, three games behind the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks and two games ahead of the Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers.

Boston will look to bounce back tomorrow night on the road against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!