After his team lost to the Celtics on Saturday, 101-89, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra looked at the stat sheet and saw that his team had shot 41.4 percent from the field while Boston had made 40.6 percent of its attempts.

The shooting was, for the most part, even. But the final score was not. Spoelstra knew what had gone wrong.

“These types of games get defined by everything in between,’’ he said. “The 50/50 balls, the loose balls. Anything that had a momentum play to it, they were winning those battles.’’

And that, Spoelstra said, is why the Celtics are in third place in the Eastern Conference. That is why they are dangerous.

Anyone who has seen these Celtics play this season understands that effort is perhaps their primary tenet. Even when their shots are off, they believe they will find another way to win. They do not care if it is unaesthetic.

“We fought, we clawed back into the game,’’ forward Jared Sullinger said, “and ultimately our effort took over.’’

The Celtics won a game in which All-Star Isaiah Thomas missed his first nine field goal attempts. They won a game in which the Heat blocked 12 shots, including eight violent swats by the seemingly unavoidable Hassan Whiteside. And they won by 12 points, without much unease at the end.

Now the Celtics, who inexplicably sputtered at TD Garden earlier this season, suddenly seem unstoppable at home. They have won 10 consecutive games in Boston, and with five of their next six games taking place here, there is a sense that the good vibes will continue.

Afterward, coach Brad Stevens was asked if he had spoken to his team about playing better at home.

“No, sorry,’’ he deadpanned before pausing. “Uh, yeah, we covered it. I said, ‘Go get ’em.’ ’’

The coach was kidding. But the Celtics said they think they are having more success here because they are more comfortable, more engaged.

“This crowd deserves for us to come out and play our hearts out every night for them,’’ guard Marcus Smart said. “And we know that and we understand that and we just want to come out and do it.’’

Recently, the Celtics have often prevailed thanks to their aggressive defense combined with hypnotizing scoring bursts by Thomas. But on Saturday, Thomas was wobbly on offense, particularly at the start. So his teammates picked him up.

Eight of the 10 Celtics who played scored 8 points or more. Smart scored a team-high 15 points and Sullinger added 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Part of the Celtics’ offensive game plan was focused on pulling Whiteside, the league’s leading shot blocker, away from the rim. That task became more difficult with 7-foot 3-point specialist Kelly Olynyk still sidelined with a sprained shoulder.

But Tyler Zeller and Sullinger worked to extend Miami’s defense with their perimeter shooting, potentially opening opportunities elsewhere. Although Whiteside finished with 13 points, 15 rebounds, and 8 blocks, his team was outscored by 17 points when he was on the floor.

“It was a tough night on a lot of us trying to finish at the rim,’’ Jae Crowder said, “but we found late ways to score and it helped us win.’’

Boston got an important lift from its bench in the first half, as the Celtics reserves outscored the first unit, 29-17. Even though the Celtics’ starters made just 6 of 26 shots in the opening half, the Celtics went to the break trailing just 49-46, and they found that encouraging.

“The starters came out flat,’’ Crowder said, “and [the reserves] came out and put a run together to help us get back in the game. I think that was a great lift from them to help us finish the game.’’

Boston trailed by 3 midway through the fourth quarter when it unspooled a quick 7-0 burst that ended when Evan Turner found Zeller streaking through the lane for a dunk, making it 86-82 with 5:46 left.

Although Whiteside controlled the interior for stretches, one late sequence from Sullinger epitomized the Celtics’ day. After finding Smart for a layup, he snatched a Heat alley-oop attempt in midair. Then at the other end, he grabbed a contested offensive rebound, and the extra possession led to Smart being fouled on a 3-point attempt.

“[The rebounds] just kept coming to me,’’ Sullinger said. “When they come, they keep coming.’’

Smart’s free throws gave the Celtics a 93-84 lead with 2:45 left, and the Heat could not recover.

It has reached the point in the season where the playoff picture is becoming less cloudy, where each win seems to resonate a bit more. If the Celtics had lost this game, they would have been tied for third place in the Eastern Conference with Miami. Instead, they are now two games ahead of the Heat. And with just 22 games left, that is notable.

“They’re right behind us,’’ Zeller said, “and it was one of those games we needed to win.’’

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach @globe.com.