BOSTON — Hassan Whiteside scored half of his 20 points during a dominant stretch spanning the third and fourth quarters to help the Miami Heat stave off Boston’s rally and snap a two-game slide with an 83-75 victory over the Celtics on Sunday.

Chris Bosh added 18 points and Tyler Johnson had 13, helping overcome the absence of Dwyane Wade and Luol Deng.

Wade missed his second game in a row with a strained right hamstring, and Deng sat out his third straight with a strained calf. Wade, who injured himself in Tuesday’s loss to Milwaukee, is averaging 21.4 points and 5.4 assists per game.

Avery Bradley and Tyler Zeller led the Celtics with 17 points apiece, and Brandon Bass had 15. It was Boston’s third straight loss and fourth in its last five.

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