FINAL
MIA-84 SA-107
MIA-81 SA-100 1:53: Great moments for the Spurs that show what a class act Popovich is as he takes out the Spurs starters one-by-one each to a standing ovation.
MIA-72 SA-90 6:30: The Spurs continue to shot lights out from 3-point range and the Heat have no answer. They have even resorted to putting Michael Beasley on the floor for some offensive production. Although the Spurs are up by 18 with half a quarter left until they win an NBA Championship, they have not let up on either end of the court.
END 3Q
MIA-58 SA-77 This game has played out just like the last two ever since the start of the 2nd quarter. An unbelievable shooting performance by the Spurs has left them with a 19 point lead to begin the 4th. Many people wonder how Popovich has such total control and respect from his players, but the answer is very evident if you watch them during blowouts. Although the Spurs have been up by about 20 for the majority of the 3rd quarter, Pop has never stopped coaching and getting on his players -- particularly about any defensive lapses that may occur. This may seem like a small thing, or even a mean thing, but this constant coaching is what has caused the Spurs to not be satisfied. They could have been satisfied with the Game 3 blowout, or the Game 4 blowout, or even the past 4 championships. Instead, the Spurs are on the verge of winning another championship.
MIA-48 SA-65 4:10: Well that was fast. A huge block from Tiago Splitter started the Spurs run that included two three pointers from Patty Mills and a three from Manu Ginobli. The Heat look like deer in headlights at this point.
MIA-40 SA-50 8:17: Not too much action to start this 3rd quarter, LeBron has not been as effective as he was in the first quarter, as Miami is yet to score a point this half. The defense for both teams has been better, but the reason for the low score total this quarter is mostly due to the inability of both teams to make shots.
HALFTIME:
MIA-40 SA-47: LeBron was limited to just 3 points in the 2nd quarter and Heat offense suffered greatly. The story of this game, and even of this series, is how LeBron has received NO help from his teammates; LeBron has scored 20 on 6/12 shooting, the rest of the team has scored 20 on 6/22 shooting. It's pretty simple for the Heat, if they want to win this game another player needs to help carry the load with LeBron. No player -- even one of the greatest of all time -- can beat a team the caliber of the Spurs by themselves offensively. Wade is old and Bosh is nowhere to be found.
In the 2nd quarter, the Spurs were carried at one stretch by Tim Duncan, and Manu Ginobli at another point. However, throughout the entire game, Kawhi Leonard has been the catalyst for the Spurs, shooting 3s and playing somewhat effective defense on LeBron. Although LeBron has scored 20 points at halftime, Kawhi is still making him work for every point and LeBron seems to not have the same amount of energy in the 2nd quarter as he had in the 1st.
MIA-37 SA-45 1:54: OH MY GOODNESS Chris Bosh just got POSTERED by Manu Ginobli. Ginobli has taken over for the Spurs drawing fouls, driving the lane, and hitting threes.
MIA-35 SA-34 5:40: Tim Duncan has taking over offensively for the Spurs, scoring in the post on the last several possessions for San Antonio. The Heat has a decision to make; double Duncan in the post and open up San Antonio shooters for 3 or make Duncan continue to play well in the post.
MIA-35 SA-28 7:10: Somehow the Spurs are only down 7 despite shooting around the 30% mark. Spoelstra has made some interesting rotation changes using Haslem, Battier, and Cole. Battier has not worked out as of yet, as explained in my previous post, and Haslem is getting worked in the post by the greatest Power Forward of all-time, Tim Duncan.
END 1Q
MIA-29 SA-22: This game has been the LeBron James show from the start. Unfortunately for the Heat, Bosh and Wade still have not really shown up to play. Ray Allen has been the beneficiary of a couple great looks from LeBron, but he has not been perfect shooting the ball. The worst player for Miami has been Shane Battier, inserted off the bench shoot 3s and play D. However, Battier has only fouled jump shooters and set poor screens. If he is not going to play effective defense, there is no place for him on the court.
San Antonio has settled for many jump shots early in the game and needs to penetrate and score in the paint if they hope to close out the series tonight.
MIA-27 SA-18 1:52: The three point shooting of San Antonio has kept them in this ballgame for now. However, their inability to penetrate the inside of the Miami defense has made the majority of their shots very difficult ones. It is unlikely that they will be able to sustain this kind of shooting for much longer, but given how they shot the last few games, anything is possible.
MIA-22 SA-8 4:48: LeBron is definitely on a mission tonight, carrying the team on his back both offensively and defensively. Although his offensive output has been significant, I believe his defensive intensity has been more critical to the Heat's early lead.
MIA-8 SA-0 8:41: Wow, for the first time in a long time the Heat are shutting down the offense of the Spurs. The main reason for this comes from the ability of LeBron James to stay in front of Tony Parker and prevent him from breaking down the Heat defense. Mario Chalmers was unable to do this through the first 4 games of the series, and it showed. Offensively, the Heat still are not reaching their full potential, but the aggressiveness of Wade and Bosh is good to see for Miami fans.
TIP: Let's see how the Heat change the defensive strategy to try to shut down the Spurs for the first time this series.
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