‘Game 2 loss is on me’: Jayson Tatum accepts blame and reveals reason for Celtics’ horror show vs Heat

The Boston Celtics conceded 11 offensive boards against the Miami Heat in their loss tonight, and Jayson Tatum took his share of the blame for it in the presser.

After leading for much of the game, the Boston Celtics let a torrid 3rd quarter and final 5 minutes of the game get to them. They lost the 3rd quarter by a whopping 20 points (37-17) and blew a 5-point lead in clutch time to concede Game 2. The Miami Heat took 18 more field goal attempts than them, out-rebounding them on the offensive glass by a margin of 5 boards.

Jayson Tatum accepts the need for the Celtics to rebound better as a team

The Boston Celtics were made to work on the interior for every rebound. The length of Bam and Kelly Olynyk proved too much for Daniel Theis to deal with. Tyler Herro out-rebounded the Celtics big man, while Tatum and Brown only had 5 and 6 boards respectively.

Jayson Tatum was quick to acknowledge his ‘bad rebounding’ in the post-game interview and took the blame for the loss in Game 2.

Also Read: “Y’all on that bulls**t”: Marcus Smart yells at Jayson Tatum and other Celtics players in Game 2 locker room meltdown

Jayson Tatum on the Celtics rebounding woes and players watching each other: “That’s on me. I didn’t rebound as good as I have been. I take ownership on that. I need to rebound way better than I did tonight.”

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 18, 2020

In an explicable occurrence, the Celtics failed to capitalize on forcing the Heat into the penalty with 8:31 to go in the 4th quarter. They shot just 2 free throws after that, missing one of those (Jaylen Brown got the pair).

Celtics were in the bonus with 8:31 to go in the fourth quarter.

They shot two free throws after that. Jaylen Brown was 1-of-2 with 3:17 to play.

I don’t know who you put that on, but Boston certainly didn’t take advantage of that at all. And it’s how Miami won Game 1. https://t.co/GYyFHOqSHH

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 18, 2020

The Celtics have a real uphill climb for the series win now. The Heat don’t seem to be going away.