Heat block a dozen shots, still lose to Celtics

Credit the Boston Celtics for continuing to attack the rim relentlessly on Saturday, despite being turned away time and again by the Miami Heat.

Miami blocked 12 Celtics shots, a big reason Boston was limited to just 40.6 percent shooting in the game. But the Celtics kept coming, and ultimately scored a remarkable 58 points in the paint on their way to beating the Heat 101-89.

Still, it was an impressive display of rim protection from Miami, and one that might've made a difference had the Heat not shot 1-of-13 from 3-point range.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was Hassan Whiteside who led the Miami block party, padding his league-best 3.9 swats per game with eight on the day.

Amar'e Stoudemire also got in on the act, recording one of the slowest chase-down blocks you'll ever see thanks to some fortunate timing and a brief fumble by Amir Johnson.

Rookie point guard Josh Richardson flashed some tantalizing athleticism, recording a much more impressive chase-down to deny Marcus Smart, then ripping the loose ball away from Tyler Zeller.

Just two minutes later, Richardson did the same to Evan Turner, seconds before the third-quarter buzzer.

Before the Celtics pulled away late in the fourth, Whiteside kept things close with his seventh and eighth blocks in quick succession.

The 26-year-old impending free agent is fast establishing himself as one of the most prolific shot-blockers in NBA history.

Whiteside finished the game with an impressive line of 13 points and 15 rebounds to go along with those eight rejections, though the Heat were outscored by 17 points during his 33 minutes on the floor.