The Miami Heat, who had all the momentum after snatching a game in Game 2 on their opponent’s home court, lost to the Boston Celtics on Saturday night in Game 3 of the NBA Playoffs first round. They are now down 2-1 in the series. Heat players Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, as well as head coach Erik Spoelstra, discussed the team’s struggles at the Kaseya Center.

It might be said that the focus of the games has been on who gets off to the best start. For example, the Celtics set the tone in Game 1 with a 14-0 run, and the Heat were unstoppable from the three-point line in Game 2, scoring eight points in the opening quarter. The squad didn’t bring that “dawg” on Saturday night, according to Adebayo, who told ClutchPoints that Miami wasted a lot of chances and expensive turnovers in Game 3.

Adebayo, who finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, said, “I don’t think we really brought that dawg tonight like we did in Game 2 where we set the tone from the jump.” “That’s not what we did tonight. It goes without saying that you can get blown off when you lack that kind of dawg mentality out by 20.”

Despite their poor shooting, the Heat gave up five turnovers in the first quarter, which allowed the Celtics to score ten points. Despite this, the Heat were still behind 21–12 at the end of the first quarter. Herro admitted to ClutchPoints after the game that their “starts have definitely hurt” them.

We have clearly suffered from our starts. I felt that in the first game, the offensive rebound clearly set the tone. However, tonight, Herro remarked, there were a few instances where the balls were in the air or on the floor, and we didn’t at least make the necessary effort to finish those.

They sent four guys, so it’s obvious they crashed the glasses more forcefully. It’s a given that a team like that will keep boxing out if they see that it’s a weakness, and that sets the tone for the remainder of the game. Undoubtedly, we’re heading toward greater heights, and I believe it all begins with those balls—the ones that are in the air and on the ground—which we must solve because they set the tone for the entire series.

Against Boston, the 24-year-old star had another difficult game, managing to score 15 points on just five of his sixteen field goal attempts. After dishing up 14 assists in Game 2, they limited Herro to just two in Game 3, demonstrating their ability to check his big play-making abilities.