Bradley's block highlights another strong outing

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On paper, Dwyane Wade has nearly 40 pounds and two inches on Avery Bradley.

On the court, none of the mattered.

During the second quarter of the Boston Celtics 91-72 win over the Miami Heat, Bradley came up with one of the biggest blocks of the game (his 11th of the season). As Wade cut to the paint and elevated, Bradley stuffed the shot, sending the ball bouncing of Wades arm and Wade to the ground.

It was pretty athletic, Wade said following the game. Hes a good defender. Pretty athletic block. I patted him on the butt and said, You looked like me on that block, kid.

The Heat were on a 12-6 run and had cut the Celtics once-11 point lead to 40-35 at the time of Bradleys block. A bucket by Wade would have closed the gap to just three points with just over three minutes to play. Instead, the Celtics stretched their edge to 49-44 at halftime.

I was just playing hard and I made a good play, a humble Bradley downplayed the move. I think it just comes from just playing hard. I'm always out there playing hard, do what I can do to help my team win.

On Sunday Bradley started in place of Ray Allen (ankle) for the fifth straight game. He knew that at 6-2, 180 pounds, there would be a size mismatch against the 6-4, 216 pound Wade. Before tipoff Bradley said he, along with point guard Rajon Rondo, planned to use their speed to pressure the Heat backcourt and stay aggressive defending the ball.

Wade finished the night with 15 points (617 FG) in 36 minutes, the least since he scored 12 against the Philadelphia 76ers eight games ago on March 16. He entered the afternoon averaging 23.0 points this season.

Following the game players from both locker rooms praised Bradleys defense.

Avery Bradley is playing tremendous, said Rondo. Hes changing the game right now with his defensive energy and the way hes playing offensively as well.

Said Shane Battier, Hes played well for them. I think they are 13-5 after the break and hes played well, especially in Rays absence.

The Celtics improved to 5-0 with Bradley as the starting shooting guard and 11-4 with him in the starting lineup overall.

At 21, the youngest member of the Celtics in filling in at veteran roles. And in just his second year in the NBA, hes taking a veteran approach to the task at hand.

Miamis a really good team and Wades a very good player, Bradley said. So I just tried to make everything hard for them.

On paper, this matchup should have been harder for Bradley. But the final box score showed Bradley finished the night with the advantage.

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