Heat star Jimmy Butler leaves Game 3 against Celtics early

Celtics Jimmy Butler left Game 3 early. Matthew J Lee/Globe staff

Everything was going the Heat’s way in the first half until the Celtics went on a 10-0 run to close Miami’s lead down to 15 entering the break.

To make matters worse for the Heat, they’ll have to hold onto their second-half lead without their top star. Forward Jimmy Butler didn’t return for the second half and was ruled out for the remainder of the game with knee inflammation.

There didn’t appear to be a specific play that Butler got hurt on as he played through the end of the first half. Butler was the Heat’s leading scorer in each of the first two games of the series, scoring 41 and 29, respectively.

Butler wasn’t as dominant of a scorer in Game 3, scoring eight points on 3-of-8 shooting.

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