The Miami Heat have had trouble playing in Charlotte recently, and even without Gerald Wallace in the lineup the Heat still needed to come out with a strong effort to beat the Bobcats. That wasn't the case in the 1st quarter yet again for Miami. They turned the ball over 6 times and allowed Charlotte to shoot 63% from the field and score 28 points, taking a 5-point lead into the 2nd quarter.
Dwyane Wade would turn things around in Miami's favor, scoring 12 straight points over a 4-minute span, then assisting on three straight buckets by LeBron James. All in all, Miami went on a 12-0 run late in the quarter that brought them right back from a 7-point deficit to a 4-point halftime lead. The Heat D was particularly good late in the 2nd, holding the Bobcats without a field goal over the last 4:05.
Charlotte's shooting drought carried over into the 3rd quarter and it got pretty ugly. After missing their last 6 shots of the 1st half they went over half of the 3rd quarter without hitting a field goal. The Bobcats missed 19 straight field goals over a 10:20 span that saw Charlotte go from up by 6 to down by 13.
From the Miami side of things, LeBron James caught fire during the 3rd. He scored 13 straight points for the Heat and had a 17-point quarter that gave his team a lead of 19 heading into the final 12 minutes. It was definitely the Dwyane and LeBron show last night in Charlotte, and the Bobcats 2nd sellout crowd of the season certainly got their moneys worth.
GAME NOTES
- LeBron James finished with 38 points and 9 rebounds, 2 points shy of his first 40 points game with the Heat. It was, however, his 10th game with 30+ points this season.
- Having maybe his best game with the Heat was Joel Anthony. He played 33 minutes, grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds and hustling more then I can remember.
- The Heat is now 15-1 when the Big 3 score 70 or more points.
- D-Wade finished with 31 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and a block. It was his 5th double double of the season and his 9th game with 30+ points.
- Tonight was Zydrunas Ilgauskas' 700th career start.
- It was also Erik Spoelstra's 200th game as an NBA head coach.
The Heat get right back at it tomorrow night when they welcome the Milwaukee Bucks to the AAA. Don't let their record fool you, they have beaten some good teams on the road this year (Dallas, Atlanta and the Lakers).