MIAMI: The good news for the Miami Heat is that the Boston Celtics might not be back in South Florida for a few months.
And that’s also the bad news for the Heat.
Boston now has full control of this Eastern Conference series, with Derrick White scoring a career-high 38 points on Monday night and leading the top-seeded Celtics past the eighth-seeded Heat 102-88 to take a 3-1 lead in their opening-round NBA playoff series.
“I made a couple shots early,” said White, who was 15 of 26 from the field and 8 of 15 from 3-point range. “That always helps. Once you make a couple, the basket looks huge.”
The Celtics won at Miami for the sixth straight time and improved to 14-3 in their last 17 games on the Heat’s home floor. But it was a costly win, with Kristaps Porzingis going down in the first half with what the team said was a right calf injury.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said he had not gotten a postgame update on Porzingis’ condition.
“I didn’t see what happened,” Mazzulla said.
Jayson Tatum added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Celtics, who got 17 points from Jaylen Brown and 11 from Jrue Holiday.
“We had to keep fighting,” Tatum said, “and play desperate in a way.”
Bam Adebayo finished with 25 points, 17 rebounds and five assists for Miami, which had a sellout crowd — including Lionel Messi — but played again without injured starters Jimmy Butler (knee) and Terry Rozier (neck). The Heat managed only 84 points in Game 3 and struggled again on offense in Game 4.
Tyler Herro scored 19 points and Caleb Martin had 18 for the eighth-seeded Heat. Miami lost rookie starter Jaime Jaquez Jr. in the second half with leg tightness; he will be evaluated Tuesday.
“Offensively, we struggled again,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We had some decent looks early on, weren’t able to knock those down, and Derrick White was very good tonight — obviously. ... He was just very efficient, very good.”
The Celtics can advance to the second round on Wednesday when they host Game 5. The Boston-Miami winner will meet the Cleveland-Orlando winner in the East semifinals; that Cavaliers-Magic series won’t end until at least Friday.
But the Celtics now have an injury concern, with Porzingis lifting his jersey over his face in exasperation after getting hurt late in the first half.
And with 5:04 left, the drama ramped up again when Tatum tried to shoot a 3-pointer after a foul was called. Adebayo defended the dead-ball play, and Tatum rolled his left ankle after Adebayo stepped into his landing area. Referees called a flagrant-1 on Adebayo, and a technical on Al Horford.
Tatum remained in the game.
“I’m sure he’s fine,” Mazzulla said.
The good news for Boston: History says this series is just about over.
This is the 29th time a Boston team has taken a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series. The Celtics won all 28 of the previous series, including seven times in the NBA Finals and a first-round series against Miami in 2010 — the last games the Heat played before luring LeBron James and Chris Bosh to South Florida and forming a superteam around Dwyane Wade.
Miami just couldn’t keep up in this one. White had 16 points in the first quarter, when the Celtics built a 34-24 lead. And no matter what the Heat did on defense, the offense couldn’t make up any gaps.
Consider: The Celtics had 34 points after 12 minutes, and it took the Heat almost 23 minutes — nearly the entire first half — to hit the 34-point mark. Miami had only 59 points through three quarters, matching a season low set in Game 1 of this series at Boston.
“I know in my heart we have a game that’s there,” Spoelstra said. “It’s just a matter of the ball going in a few more times, and all of a sudden it ignites.”
Derrick White scores 38, Celtics top Heat 102-88 to take a 3-1 East playoff series lead
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Derrick White scores 38, Celtics top Heat 102-88 to take a 3-1 East playoff series lead
McIlroy eyes 5th Dubai Desert Classic crown to mark 20 years at Emirates Golf Club
- The Northern Irishman rounded off a stellar season last year with career Grand Slam
DUBAI: Rory McIlroy has revealed his focus for the 2026 DP World Tour campaign as he targets his fifth Rolex Series title at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
The world No. 2 enjoyed a year to remember in 2025, becoming the sixth male player in history to complete the career Grand Slam with victory at the Masters last April.
The Northern Irishman added further silverware in September by claiming his second Amgen Irish Open title before playing a pivotal role in helping Team Europe retain the Ryder Cup in a dramatic contest at Bethpage Black in New York.
He rounded off a stellar season by lifting the Harry Vardon Trophy for a seventh time, confirming his status as Europe’s Number One.
Despite a momentous year, the 36-year-old insists he will not rest on his laurels and will bring the same hunger and enthusiasm to every event.
“I think I need to show up at tournaments with enthusiasm every single time,” said McIlroy. “Playing in the places that I want to play, playing the tournaments I want to play. Not feeling like I’m at a tournament because I’m obligated or have to be there, but because I want to be there.
“I think it’s bringing that attitude and knowing my limitations. I’ve always said the results will take care of themselves if you do the other things right, and I think this year my focus is just doing the other things right. Then I feel like I’m a good enough golfer that the results will take care of themselves.”
His enduring affinity with the Middle East was on display again at last week’s Dubai Invitational, where he finished two shots behind winner Nacho Elvira in a share of third. That result extended his remarkable record in the UAE to seven victories, eight runner-up finishes and 37 top 10 results.
This week also marks 20 years since McIlroy made his debut at Emirates Golf Club as a 16-year-old amateur, as he sets his sights on capturing the iconic Dallah Trophy for an unprecedented fifth time.
“I love Dubai. It holds so many great memories for me, first of which was coming here as a 16-year-old and playing in the Dubai Desert Classic for the first time as an amateur, and I played twice as an amateur,” he added.
“In 2007, I made the cut, and that got me to world number one in the amateur rankings, and two years later, I won my first professional event here. So it’s a lot of great memories. I’ve met a lot of great people along the way. Honestly, I’ve always felt like it was a perfect place to start the year.”
Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton admitted returning to the Hero Dubai Desert Classic as defending champion felt “surreal” as he prepared for his first start on the 2026 Race to Dubai.
The 34-year-old edged New Zealand’s Daniel Hillier by one shot to claim his eighth DP World Tour title at last year’s event, and the world No. 21 has again highlighted the tournament as a priority on his schedule.
“It’s always great to be here playing this event. This is my 13th year on Tour, and this was always one of the events I looked forward to playing or hoped that I would play in one day,” said Hatton.
“I remember as a kid, I’d wake up early before going to school and I’d enjoy watching this event on TV. So to play in this event and to come back here as defending champion is somewhat surreal, but very special and I always enjoy starting my season here.
“This is a massive event for me. This is a tournament that I always look forward to playing in. Off the top of my head, I don’t think I’ve missed this event since I got my Tour card. I love playing here. I’d love to give myself a good chance to defend the title this week.”
Victory in Dubai would see Hatton move clear of Ryder Cup team-mate Jon Rahm as the most successful Rolex Series player since its inception in 2017, with both players locked on five triumphs.
“I’ve just been lucky that I’ve played well in the big events. I’m proud of my record to win five Rolex Series, and three wins at the Dunhill as well is really special,” he said. “The events I’ve been lucky enough to win, they are all pretty prestigious with the Tour, so something I’m proud of.”
Past champion Viktor Hovland opened his 2026 campaign with a top 25 finish at the Nedbank Golf Challenge in honor of Gary Player in December, and despite remaining in the evolution of his swing, the Norwegian is also optimistic for the season ahead.
“I would say I managed things better towards the end of year. I had some better results and found a bit more consistency,” said Hovland.
“I took a few weeks off at the end of the year and (have) been out here the past couple weeks just practicing and getting ready. Grant (Waite) came out here last week, and I think we really got down to, how do I actually solve this problem? And as soon as I found the feel for it, it started looking almost like it did back in the day.
“It might be a little bit too quick this week, but I’m really happy with just how things are trending. I think this year is going to be a good one.”
