Friday, June 14, 2013
SPURS VOICE: SPURS GO OFF ON HEAT IN GAME 3
SPURS VOICE: SPURS GO OFF ON HEAT IN GAME 3: Between Tony Parker, Gary Neal, and Danny Green, they combined for 16 three pointers, which equals 48 points, and they blasted by the Hea...
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Durant powers Thunder past LeBron's Heat 105-94
So far, his side is winning both matchups.
Durant delivered the fourth quarter his counterpart never could last year, scoring 17 of his 36 points and leading a Thunder storm that overwhelmed Miami and gave Oklahoma City a 105-94 victory in Game 1 on Tuesday night.
James and the Heat started well against the young Thunder, who acknowledged some first finals nerves.
They've already figured out finishing, Durant showing James how a superstar is supposed to play in the fourth quarter.
''Well, those guys, they came out on fire. They were passing the ball well, knocking down shots. We just wanted to continue to keep playing,'' Durant said. ''It's a long game, and every time our coach was just saying play harder, play harder, and that's what we did.''
Teaming with Russell Westbrook to outscore the Heat in the second half by themselves, Durant struck first in his head-to-head matchup with James, who had seven points in the final quarter and was helpless to stop the league's three-time scoring champion.
Westbrook turned around a poor shooting start to finish with 27 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds for the Thunder, keying a strong finish to the third period that gave the Thunder the lead for good.
Durant took over from there.
Scoring in nearly every way possible, Durant finished 12 of 20 from the field and added eight rebounds. He and Westbrook outscored the Heat 41-40 over the final two periods, showing that maybe this time it
will be offense that wins championships.
''That's what they do, they keep on coming,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ''They're relentless.''
James finished with 30 points, the most in any of his 11 finals games, but had only one basket over the first 8:15 of the fourth, when the Thunder seized control of a game they trailed for all but the final few seconds of the first three quarters.
James averaged just three points in the fourth quarters of the Heat's six-game loss to Dallas last year, taking almost all the blame for Miami's finals failure. He was good in this one, Durant was just better.
''They didn't make many mistakes in the fourth quarter,'' James said.
And when fans chanted ''MVP! MVP!'' late in the game, they weren't talking about James, the guy who won the regular-season award.
They meant Durant, who is in a race with James for his first ring - and maybe the title of best player in the game.
Game 2 is Thursday night in Oklahoma City.
Dwyane Wade had 19 points but shot just 7 of 19 for the Heat, while Shane Battier provided some rare
offense by scoring 17 points, his high this postseason.
Turning to a small lineup late in the third quarter, the Thunder improved to 9-0 at home in the postseason. Defensive ace Thabo Sefolosha helped defend James during the Thunder's comeback, relieving Durant of the burden so he could focus on his scoring.
And right now, nobody does it better.
Spoelstra said his team, pushed to seven games against Boston in a grueling conference finals the Heat finally won Saturday, preferred this quick turnaround. But perhaps they ran out of gas against the young Thunder, whose core players are all 23 and younger and look as if they could keep playing all night.
''Honestly, I think we just came out with a lot more intensity on the defensive end. Made them feel us a little bit,'' Westbrook said of the second half, when the Thunder outscored the Heat 58-40.
James and Wade both were bent over, hands on knees, during one stoppage with about 7 minutes remaining. Durant kept pouring it on, racing down the court to throw down a fast-break dunk and later adding a 3-pointer that pushed it to 87-81 with 6 1-2 minutes remaining.
The Heat got within four points, but Durant hit two quick baskets and Westbrook added another for a 10-point lead with 3:35 to go.
''They just made more plays than us,'' Wade said. ''They got a couple offensive rebounds that kind of hurt us. Got a couple of open shots and from that point we were kind of playing from behind.''
It's been a rapid rise toward the top for the Thunder, who started 3-29 in 2008-09, their first season here after moving from Seattle. Fans were clearly embracing the finals' arrival in Oklahoma City, where cars, buildings and even fans' hair seemed to be painted some form of orange or blue.
Fans standing until the Thunder's first basket didn't have to wait long, Durant knocking down a baseline jumper 70 seconds in. He made his first three shots, including two 3-pointers, but his teammates missed their first six attempts in falling into an early hole.
Durant made sure they were fine at the end.
Both superstars tried to downplay their individual matchup, Durant insisting it was about the team and James adamant that he didn't care about the best player in the game argument.
It was James' supporting cast that stepped up bigger to start, the Heat hitting five of their six 3-point attempts in jumping to a 29-22 lead after one quarter. Spoelstra kept Chris Bosh as a reserve, the role he has played since returning from a nine-game absence with a strained lower abdominal muscle. Smart decision, as Battier hit his first three 3-point attempts in the opening minutes to spark Miami's strong
start.
Durant took only one shot in the second quarter, and it wasn't until 9 minutes had passed. By then, the Heat had built a lead as large as 13 points, keeping it in or near double digits most of the period before the Thunder sliced it to 54-47 at halftime.
The rest of the story...
Sunday, March 25, 2012
HEAT to Host 15th Annual Family Festival
2012 “Fire and Ice” Themed Event Presented By Carnival Cruise Lines Will Include the First Ever “Snow Day” at AmericanAirlines Arena, Live Music, Family Activities, a Food Court and a Silent Auction
MIAMI, February 29th – The Miami HEAT announced today it will transform Parcel B by the Bay into a "Fire and Ice" playground during the 15th Annual Miami HEAT Family Festival presented by Carnival Cruise Lines, an interactive celebration benefiting SafeSpace, the Jackson Memorial Foundation’s Guardian Angels, the Miami Coalition for a Safe & Drug-Free Community, and the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund. The event will take place on Sunday, March 11 from 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. at Parcel B by the Bay behind the AmericanAirlines Arena located at 601 Biscayne Boulevard in downtown Miami.
The Miami HEAT Family Festival, which is the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund’s largest annual fundraiser, is a themed, interactive, carnival-like celebration in which HEAT players, coaches, celebrities and families come together for a day of fun, family and feasting. The Festival features a dining extravaganza drawing the top restaurants and chefs from all over South Florida. Families enjoy countless interactive activities with HEAT players, coaches and their families, providing a memorable experience for guests of all ages.
This year’s Fire and Ice themed event will feature the first ever “snow day” at AmericanAirlines Arena complete with a special snow play area for children, ice fishing, and a sno cone station. The entire Miami HEAT team and coaching staff will participate in the festivities which include live music by The Platinum Band, a special set to be performed by Nick Aquilino, appearances by DJ Irie, the Miami HEAT Dancers, Burnie the mascot, in-arena P.A. announcer, Michael B., the Golden Oldies, HEAT Banana Man, a silent auction and much more.
Family Festival ticket packages cost $1,000 and provide admission for five persons. To purchase tickets for the HEAT Family Festival, call 786-777-4420.
About the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund
Established in 1997, the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund supports programs for the betterment of at-risk families in South Florida. Beneficiaries include SafeSpace, a domestic violence shelter for women and children, the Jackson Memorial Foundation’s Guardian Angels and Holtz Children’s Hospital, and the Miami Coalition for a Safe and Drug-Free Community. To date, the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund has raised over $14 million. The Miami HEAT Charitable Fund also provides educational scholarships for high school seniors and partners with inner-city elementary schools to fund the HEAT Academy, which provides after-school tutoring and mentoring programs. Through these initiatives, the Miami HEAT Charitable Fund continues to inspire the youth of South Florida to envision their dreams and achieve their goals.
The Miami HEAT is proud to have ASSIST-CARD as the Presenting Sponsor for the 2011-12 season.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Heat beat Pistons 88-73 for fourth straight win
By NOAH TRISTER, AP Sports Writer
Mar 23, 11:34 pm EDT
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP)—LeBron James and the Miami Heat were thinking about a lot more than basketball Friday.
All anyone needed to do was look at their shoes.
James and Dwyane Wade were among several Miami players who took the floor with messages on their sneakers about the death of an unarmed black teenager who was shot by a neighborhood crime-watch volunteer in a suburb of Orlando, Fla. The Heat made quick work of the Pistons in an 88-73 victory, but the focus afterward was on the team’s decision to speak out.
Miami also posed for a picture earlier in the day wearing team-logo hoodies. Trayvon Martin was wearing a hooded sweatshirt when he was shot last month.
“As leaders, as role models, we’re happy that we’re able to shed light on a situation that we feel isn’t right,” James said. “That’s why we did that today.”
James had 17 points and 10 assists, and Wade added 24 points for Miami, which won its fourth straight. The game itself was unremarkable, but the Heat attracted attention well before the opening tip.
Martin was killed as he was returning to a gated community, carrying candy and iced tea. A neighborhood crime-watch volunteer, George Zimmerman, said he acted in self-defense. He has not been arrested, though state and federal authorities are still investigating.
Protests have popped up nationwide in recent days, and Wade posted a photo of himself wearing a hooded shirt to his Twitter and Facebook pages Friday morning. A couple hours later, James posted another photo—this one of 13 Heat players, all wearing team-logo hoodies, their heads bowed, their hands stuffed into their pockets.
“Just a sign of support from us and our team,” Wade said. “I’m glad that everybody really was on board with it and wanted to do it, because a lot of times it’s hard for guys to take that leap and step out and get into the political world. For us, we just want to support his family, in memory of him.”
Players took the floor with messages such as “RIP Trayvon Martin” and “We want justice” scrawled on their shoes.
Miami then took control of the game early. The Heat led by 26 in the third quarter, although Detroit did rally to make it respectable.
Brandon Knight scored 18 points for the Pistons, who have lost five of six.
“We knew exactly how they were going to defend us, but we weren’t able to do much against them,” Detroit coach Lawrence Frank said. “We kept trying to move the ball through the forest of hands, and they were getting all kinds of tips and deflections.”
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Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Magic beat Heat, Howard wants to finish season
By KYLE HIGHTOWER
Posted Mar 14 2012 1:45AM
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) First, the Orlando Magic earned one of their biggest victories of the season. Then Dwight Howard turned the tables on what has been the biggest player soap opera of this NBA regular season.
Minutes after the Magic came back for a thrilling 104-98 overtime victory over the Miami Heat on Tuesday night, Howard took back his preseason trade request and said he's told team officials that he wants to stay with the team for the remainder of the season.
"Well, I told those guys, I've been telling them for the past two or three weeks now that I want to stay and finish the season," Howard said.
"I told them I feel we have a great opportunity to win and I told them that I want to be here and I want to bring a championship here. I told them they've got to give me that chance. They didn't trade me at the beginning of the season and I told them I'd go out and play as hard as I could every night to put our team in a position to win."
Howard had 24 points and 25 rebounds, and Jameer Nelson scored 25 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter and overtime, but the story was what happened after the final buzzer.
Howard said in the preseason that he wanted to be traded, potentially ending a seven-year relationship for the only franchise the 26-year-old, three-time Defensive Player of the Year has known. He has the option of terminating his current contract and becoming a free agent in July.
Now those plans appear to be off for now, on a night when he could have conceivably played his final home game in a Magic jersey.
"We're third in the East and playing great basketball," Howard said. "I don't want to see that slip away. We have to take a chance and I think we have a great chance to surprise a lot of people by winning."
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