Miami Heat Blog – Page 122 – NBA Blog

76ers rally to beat Heat 86-82 in Game 4

The AP reports:

Lou Williams hit a 3-pointer with 8.1 seconds left to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to an 86-82 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday and avoid a sweep.

Miami was 95 seconds away from winning Game 4, holding an 82-76 lead.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the rest of the Heat didn’t score again.

Jrue Holiday made a 3 with 46.6 seconds left that sliced the deficit to one. Williams followed with a 3 from the top of the arc for an 84-82 lead that sent the nearly 20,000 fans into a frenzy.

Game 5 is Wednesday in Miami.

Williams and Evan Turner led the Sixers with 17 points each. Andre Iguodala added 16 points and Elton Brand had 15 points and 11 rebounds.

James scored 31 points for the Heat and Wade 22. Bosh scored 12 points and had two blocks late in the game that seemed to seal the win for the Heat.

Wade scores 32, Heat beat 76ers 100-94 for 3-0 series lead

The AP reports:

Dwyane Wade had 32 points and 10 rebounds, LeBron James finished with 24 points and 15 boards and the Miami Heat took a 3-0 lead in their first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers with a 100-94 victory Thursday night…

Wade delivered with a string of big baskets—he was 10 of 19 from the field overall—in the third and fourth quarters that spurred the Heat to the brink of the conference semifinals. He drew a foul on a spin move against Jrue Holiday and hit two free throws with 51.6 seconds left that about clinched the game…

Wade was 12 for 12 from the free throw line. For all the hype around the Big Three, Wade remembers he was the Biggest One in Miami. He still plays that way and the Heat needed all of his all-around excellence against the scrappy Sixers.

Chris Bosh scored 19 points for the Heat, who rallied from an early 10-point deficit to move within one win of a sweep of the Eastern Conference series…

Lou Williams missed a 3 with 43 seconds left that would have made it a one-point game. Holiday scored 20 points, Williams finished with 15 and Elton Brand had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers.

The Heat dominated again from the free-throw line, going 24 for 30 to Philadelphia’s 13 of 19…

Philadelphia’s fast start fizzled down the stretch and a team that showed amazing resiliency all season simply doesn’t have the talent to match up with the Heat.

Heat roll to 2-0 lead over 76ers, 94-73

The AP reports:

LeBron James scored 29 points, Chris Bosh had his second straight double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Miami took a 2-0 series lead with a 94-73 victory over the abysmally shooting 76ers on Monday night.

Showing no signs of the migraine that he battled Sunday, Dwyane Wade scored 14 points for Miami, now 17-3 in its last 20 games and halfway to winning its first playoff series since the 2006 conference finals…

Thaddeus Young scored 18 points and Evan Turner added 15 for the 76ers, whose starters were outscored 76-29 by the Heat’s first-string. Philadelphia shot 34 percent for the game, and after getting 42 points in the paint in Game 1, were held to 24 in that department Monday…

Philadelphia shot only 26 percent in the first half, a record for a Heat playoff opponent. The 76ers’ starters were outscored 41-9 in the opening 24 minutes, and unlike their last two meetings, never put a scare into Miami. Philadelphia had a 16-point lead in the teams’ final regular-season matchup, a 14-point lead in Game 1, but simply couldn’t get rolling Monday.

Miami leading in Heat-Sixers Game 2 first half

By Scott Spangler

After one quarter, Philly was shooting 4 for 20 from the floor. Had to feel fortunate to only be down six.

And not to take anything away from Miami, because they are scrambling and playing hard on the defensive end, but I wonder if this has to do more with the lack of shot-making ability by the 76ers in the halfcourt.

Good thing Evan Turner checked in with guns blazin’. The rookie has been pretty much hit or miss this season, but his play off Doug Collins’ bench is about the only bright spot for the Sixers so far. The 10 points turned in by Turner represent the bulk of Philadelphia’s scoring.

And their starters? Try nine total first-half points.

The Heat find themselves coasting at the half, leading 49-31, shooting 50 percent, and getting just about anything they want offensively. As usual, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are getting into the paint, and setting the table for a Miami route.

Dwyane Wade misses practice with migraine, uncertain for Game 2

Brian Windhorst of ESPN reports:

Dwyane Wade missed the Miami Heat’s practice Sunday with a migraine, leaving his status for Monday’s Game 2 of the Heat’s series with the Philadelphia 76ers in question.

Wade has battled migraines at various times during his career and in January missed a game because of symptoms. That bout left him with light sensitivity for several days. He needed tinted goggles in a game in New York because of it but still scored 34 points in a loss to the Knicks.

The headache started to bother Wade before Saturday’s Game 1, a 97-89 Miami victory, in which Wade finished with just 17 points and battled rare foul trouble.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

Bosh scores 25, Heat beat 76ers in Game 1, 97-89

The AP reports:

Chris Bosh had 25 points and 12 rebounds, LeBron James added 21 points and 14 rebounds, and Wade scored five of his 17 points in the final 1:34 as the Heat held off a huge Philadelphia comeback try and beat the 76ers 97-89 in the opener of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.

“The only number that matters right now is 1-0,” Wade said. “That’s all it’s about.”

Game 2 is Monday night.

Thaddeus Young had 20 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers, while Jrue Holiday added 19 and Elton Brand finished with 17. It was the second time in 22 days that Philadelphia blew a big second-quarter lead in Miami: On March 25, the 76ers led by 16, and on Saturday, the margin was 14…

The 76ers scored 12 straight points in the fourth quarter, closing to 88-87 — but never getting the lead back. Bosh made two free throws and Wade hit a tough bank shot to give Miami a five-point edge. And after Young scored Philadelphia’s final points with 1:24 left, Wade sealed it with a pair of foul shots 14 seconds later.

2011 NBA Playoffs first round schedule

The 2010-11 NBA regular season is in the books, with all 30 teams in action Wednesday night. The NBA playoffs begin Saturday.

The first round matchups in the East are: Bulls vs Pacers, Heat vs 76ers, Celtics vs Knicks, and Magic vs Hawks.

The West’s first round matchups are: Spurs vs Grizzlies, Lakers vs Hornets, Mavericks vs Blazers, and Thunder vs Nuggets.

The complete first round series-by-series NBA playoffs schedule is here.

Heat rock Celtics 100-77

The AP reports:

LeBron James scored 27 points, Dwyane Wade added 14 and the Heat moved closer to wrapping up the No. 2 seed in the East playoffs by beating the sliding Celtics 100-77 on Sunday.

Miami moved a game ahead of Boston, and trimmed its magic number to clinch the second seed to two.

Chris Bosh added 13 points and eight rebounds for Miami, which had been 0-3 against Boston this season.

Paul Pierce scored 24 points and Kevin Garnett added 21 for Boston, which lost for the 10th time in its last 19 games.

The Heat finally solved the Boston hex, beating the Celtics for the third time in the last 21 meetings. Bosh had been 1-13 against Boston since March 2007, and the Celtics ended both the 2009-10 seasons for Wade (in the first round) and James (in the second round).

Miami won for the 13th time in its last 16 games and outrebounded Boston 42-26, the Celtics’ total a season low.

Ray Allen scored 13 points for the Celtics. Rajon Rondo was held to just seven points and five assists on 3 for 8 shooting.

Legendary Nike designer Tinker Hatfield does not like working with giant LeBron James entourage

Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports:

Tinker Hatfield is the Michael Jordan of designers at Nike, a legend in the shoe design field and the guy who runs the company’s “Innovation Kitchen.” He also, apparently, is not a fan of LeBron James’ associates.

Hatfield rarely does interviews and guards his secrets closely. But he did a private appearance at a Miami shoe store last week in which he took some questions from customers. During the session, which was recorded and posted on YouTube, Hatfield said he stopped personally developing James’ signature shoes because he didn’t like dealing with those around James.

“I don’t like working with LeBron’s entourage,” Hatfield said. “It’s too many people, too many ideas, too many opinions.”

It is the second time in the last six months Hatfield has publicly taken a shot at James various friends and managers. During a similar event last October in Santa Monica, Calif., Hatfield told a group of listeners at a shoe store that “I used to work on LeBron’s, until his entourage kind of pissed me off.”

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

LeBron James reaches 2,000 points for 7th straight year

The AP reports:

Miami Heat forward LeBron James has now scored 2,000 points in seven straight seasons.

James entered Wednesday night’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks with 1,998 points this season. He made a pair of free throws with 2:12 remaining in the first quarter to reach the 2,000 milestone.

The NBA’s two-time reigning MVP is the eighth player to score 2,000 points seven times. At 26, he’s the youngest member of that club.