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NBA: Butler returns as Heat down Knicks for series lead

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Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (R) shoots over New York Knicks guard Josh Hart and center Isaiah Hartenstein during the second half of Game 3 of their NBA Eastern Conference second round series at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, USA, May 6, 2023. Rhona Wise, EPA-EFE" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/overseas/05/07/butler.jpg"/><figcaption>Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (R) shoots over New York Knicks guard Josh Hart and center Isaiah Hartenstein during the second half of Game 3 of their NBA Eastern Conference second round series at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, USA, May 6, 2023. <em>Rhona Wise, EPA-EFE</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MIAMI -- Jimmy Butler made a triumphant return from injury as the Miami Heat downed the New York Knicks 105-86 on Saturday to take a 2-1 lead in their NBA Eastern Conference playoff series.</p><p>Butler, who sat out Miami&#x27;s game two defeat in New York on Tuesday after rolling his ankle in game one, showed no sign of the problem as he once again led the Heat&#x27;s scoring with 28 points, adding four rebounds and three assists.</p><p>Butler was one of four Miami players to finish in double figures in a game that the eighth-seeded Heat led from start-to-finish.</p><p>Max Strus finished with 19 points, including three three-pointers, while defensive linchpin Bam Adebayo weighed in with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Kyle Lowry added 14 points for Miami.</p><div><strong>HIGHLIGHTS:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ktIWbf2YsO8?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>&quot;It feels good to get a dub (W) on our home floor in front of our fans. We&#x27;re going to take that and roll with it,&quot; said Butler, whose dazzling form helped eliminate the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the post-season.</p><p>&quot;I&#x27;m comfortable, I&#x27;m confident and I work extremely hard at my craft,&quot; Butler said. &quot;My teammates have got a lot to do with that.</p><p>&quot;They always make sure I&#x27;m catching the ball in spots where I&#x27;m comfortable and letting me be aggressive.&quot;</p><p>Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said Butler&#x27;s return to the lineup had infused his teammates with confidence.</p><p>&quot;You can&#x27;t put an analytic to it. It&#x27;s just the overall confidence level your team has -- that you can always get the ball to him and know that we&#x27;ll get something efficient and coherent,&quot; Spoelstra said of Butler.</p><p>&quot;We have a bunch of guys stepping up. We&#x27;re more dangerous when a lot of guys are putting their fingerprints on the win at both ends of the court.</p><p>&quot;But you need a guy like Jimmy when you&#x27;re playing against a good team like this.&quot;</p><p>Jalen Brunson led New York with 20 points as the Knicks were outmuscled by a combative Miami lineup that outscored their opponents in all four quarters.</p><p>New York&#x27;s problems were compounded by a dismal shooting performance, with the Knicks making just 31-of-91 from the field.</p><p>&quot;The start of the game we got back on our heels, their aggressiveness ... we couldn&#x27;t get stops early, so we didn&#x27;t get any easy buckets, so we paid the price,&quot; Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said after the loss.</p><p>&quot;We got bogged down and offense was hard. But credit to them, they played great defense.</p><p>&quot;Defensively we were solid, but offensively we didn&#x27;t play the way we wanted to. I don&#x27;t put that on one player. It&#x27;s a collective effort.&quot;</p><p>Miami&#x27;s robust approach led to tempers flaring in the third quarter when Cody Zeller shoved over Randle as the two grappled under the basket, prompting a melee involving players from both sides.</p><p>Game four in the best-of-seven series takes place in Miami on Monday.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

The Miami Heat downed the New York Knicks 105-86 on Saturday to take a 2-1 lead in their NBA Eastern Conference playoff series.