Hugo Gonzalez, Norman Powell warmed up during the Celtics-Heat clash

It was a wild ride at TD Garden on Friday night, with Boston Celtics rallied from 22 points down to win Miami Heat 98-96, featuring a heated moment between Boston rookie Hugo Gonzalez and Miami All-Star Norman Powell.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, two players fought for a loose ball, leading to an exchange of pushes which attracted attention from both benches. Powell, recently back from a three-game layoff, confronted Gonzalez with a pointed, “What’s up?” The confrontation ended as the two quickly separated.

Hugo Gonzalez had some words for Norman Powell in the Celtics-Heat 👀pic.tvitter.com/HLPUKSKaVfc

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 7, 2026

The game was a tale of two halves. The Celtics were poor offensively early, shooting just 1 of 20 from three-point range and scoring just 38 points in the first half. Boston opened the second quarter with a 42-22 deficit after a slow start, including a 13-2 deficit in the first three minutes. Meanwhile, the Heat, missing Tyler Hero and Terry Rozier, got off to a strong start behind Norman Powell, Andrew Wiggins and Bam Adebayo. Wiggins led Miami with 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting, adding six rebounds and two steals. Powell had 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting, along with three rebounds, four assists and four steals.

The Celtics turned the game around in the third quarter, outscoring the Heat 36-15. Jaylen Brown led the comeback with 29 points, Derrick White scored 21 points and made four key blocks, while Peyton Pritchard scored 24 off the bench. The newly minted Nikola Vucevic scored 11 points and 12 rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench in his debut for Boston. Boston also hit 5 of 7 3-pointers in the third, and White hit a 3-pointer off a steal to help tie the game. The Celtics’ bench contributions, including Baylor Scheierman’s +17 plus-minus, were instrumental in the comeback.

Miami kept the game close despite a third-quarter collapse, with Adebayo scoring 16 points and grabbing seven rebounds. The Heat’s bench, however, failed to provide consistent support, with Nikola Jovic going 0-for-5 in six minutes and the four-man unit of Jaquez Jr., Drew Smith, Simone Fontecchio and Kel’el Ware producing minimal impact. Davion Mitchell’s late-game turnovers allowed Boston to hold on to a two-point lead in the final seconds. White finished off the defensive end by blocking Mitchell with 32 seconds left.

Boston improved to 34-18, extending its winning streak to five games, while the Heat fell to 27-26, now 0-3 against the Celtics this season. Boston will host the New York Knicks on Sunday, and the Heat will travel to Washington to face the Wizards