If you were wondering why Chris Bosh didn’t have much of an impact in Game 3 against Boston, you’re not the only one. Finishing with six points and five rebounds in 30 minutes worth of work, something had to be up. But who would’ve thought it was his nerves?
When the Miami Heat came on the floor 15 minutes before Game 3’s tipoff Saturday night the arena was darkened and the seats at TD Garden were full. On the videoboard above, the Boston Celtics were shown outside their locker room jumping up and down as the theme from Rocky pulsed from the loud speakers.
It was intimidating and that was before anyone had even broken a sweat. Most arenas are rowdy in the playoffs and in Boston it’s tradition.
The intensity of that atmosphere got to Chris Bosh, something he admitted when looking back on his first road game in the second round. Bosh said nerves were a major factor in perhaps his worst game of the season, a six-point, five-rebound effort in 30 minutes in the Heat’s 97-81 blowout loss.
“Given all the elements that were out there last night … they were so hyped,” Bosh said. “My emotions got the best of me early on and it kind of dictated what I was doing for the rest of the game.”
Read more about Bosh’s performance via ESPN.com.
