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May 18 (UPI) -- Jimmy Butler torched the Boston Celtics for 35 points, sparking a Game 1 win in the Eastern Conference finals, but said the victory wasn't enough and the Miami Heat will improve on defending forward Jayson Tatum. Butler logged seven assists, six steals and five rebounds in the 123-116 triumph Wednesday at TD Garden in Boston. The Heat scored a franchise playoff record 46 points in the third quarter.
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"I feel like we did a really good job on the defensive end, shared the ball on offense, made some shots and got a win," Butler told reporters.
"But that's not enough for us. We want to get another one in two days."
The No. 8 Heat trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, but outscored the No. 2 Celtics 66-50 over the final 24 minutes to steal the series opener.
Game 2 will be 8:30 p.m. EDT Friday in Boston.
"We're going to have practice and watch film," said Tatum, who scored 30 points in the loss. "We're going to talk about it, discuss the things that we did well, the things that we can do better, and come out and execute better on Friday."
The Heat and Celtics exchanged the lead several times through the first 12 minutes. Butler scored 12 in the first quarter, but the Celtics carried a 30-28 edge into the second,
The Celtics used a 19-5 run to earn a 62-49 edge 2:08 before halftime and led by nine at the break. The Heat used a 13-1 run to tie the score at 72-72 less than four minutes into the third.
Heat players made 17 of 26 shots, including six 3-pointers, in the frame to carried a 103-91 edge into the fourth. Heat guard Max Strus scored 13 points in the third quarter. Butler scored 12 points in the frame.
The Celtics started the fourth quarter with seven unanswered points, but never rallied to take back the lead.
Strus, fellow guards Gabe Vincent and Kyle Lowry and forward Caleb Martin scored 15 points apiece in the victory. Heat center Bam Adebayo totaled 20 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, but made just 1 of 6 3-point attempts for the Celtics. Fellow Celtics guards Marcus Smart and Malcolm Brogdon scored 13 and 19 points, respectively.
