MIAMI — Brad Stevens has continually said that the Celtics weren’t as good as their winning streak indicated, and the flaws were finally mortal Wednesday night.
The Celtics, after coming back twice from 18-point deficits and another from 16 during the 16-game streak, finally dug themselves one hole too many in their 104-98 loss to Miami.
Another, far more personal Celtics streak from a Miami perspective also hit the wall, when a chain of eight straight wins by the C’s in the series was broken.
The Celtics never developed an eye for the basket, shooting 41 percent, with a long line of players like Al Horford (seven points, 3-for-10), Marcus Smart (seven, 3-for-9) and Marcus Morris (14, 3-for-9) struggling to shoot.