Jimmy Butler Applauded by Twitter as Heat Take 3-1 Series Lead over Brunson, Knicks

The Miami Heat are one win away from reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the third time in four years.

Miami defeated the New York Knicks 109-101 in Game 4 of their second-round playoff series on Monday to seize a commanding 3-1 lead. It seemed like the Knicks were poised to perhaps advance past the second round for the first time in 23 years when they won Game 2, but the Heat have full control of the series after winning back-to-back contests at home.

Jimmy Butler continued his playoff heroics with 27 points, 10 assists, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a brilliant two-way display.

Bam Adebayo also impressed with a double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds, but it was Butler who drew plenty of social-media love:

Butler remains the story of the playoffs for the Heat, but the start of Monday's game belonged to Adebayo.

The big man overwhelmed New York's frontcourt throughout the first half with his footwork and touch around the rim while controlling the boards and anchoring the interior defense. It was enough to stake the home team to an eight-point lead before intermission.

It was just a matter of time before Butler picked his scoring spots, and he and Max Strus spearheaded the effort out of the locker room to keep the Knicks at bay. Miami had an answer for every mini-spurt from the trio of Jalen Brunson, RJ Barrett and Julius Randle.

The second half was an exercise in frustration for New York, as it lost a point even with an excellent offensive quarter in the third, lost the battle for the boards as Miami grabbed 13 offensive rebounds and saw Randle and Josh Hart foul out as multiple players dealt with foul troubles.

Some highlight plays stood out, including Caleb Martin's monster dunk and a Butler block at the rim, but the Heat methodically put the visitors away in the second half with their leader stuffing the stat sheet.

Now they can close things out when the series returns to New York for Wednesday's Game 5.