Jimmy Butler's return lifts Heat to 2-1 series lead

Butler shook off his injury to score 28 points in 36 minutes. Miami's lead let Butler sit for all but 3:34 of the final quarter, thanks to a 17-point lead after three quarters.

Not only did Butler ignore his sore ankle, he also ignored a chaotic scene at the end of the third quarter, when Miami's Cody Zeller scuffled with New York's Julius Randle and Isaiah Hartenstein.

Zeller, Hartenstein and Miami's Caleb Martin all got technical fouls, but Butler just danced off the incident.

In a game where neither team could hit a three-pointer — they combined to shoot 15-72 — the Heat simply pushed the Knicks around. They won the rebounding battle despite their size disadvantage, and went 28-31 from the free throw line. 

Bam Adebayo had 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Kevin Love added nine points and four assists. And a masterful two-man troll job with Jimmy Butler when the Knicks stepped out of bounds.

But it all started with the unstoppable Jimmy Buckets, who added two blocks and four assists to his game-high 28 points, and only turned the ball over twice. 

The Knicks need to find an answer for Butler soon — and it doesn't appear to be Josh Hart.

The series continues Monday night in Miami.