In Game 2, Miami was without its star, Jimmy Butler (sprained ankle), who returned with a vengeance for Game 3, scoring 28 points on 9-of-21 shooting and a 10-of-11 free throw line score over 36 minutes.
“I think it’s kind of the nature of the beast this time of year, in playoff situations,” Thibodeau said. “Teams that lose the previous game usually come out with a lot of intensity so we knew it was going to happen. We thought Jimmy Butler was very aggressive to start the game. And then we got into a hole early and they played from an advantage so we have to be much more aggressive”.