Something that Heat fans are growing accustomed to, though we certainly don't like it, is Miami beginning games with a slow start. Game 2 against Boston was no exception as the Heat began the game missing their first 6 shots but still managed to keep right up with the Celtics. Both teams shot the ball well from downtown early on, and Miami even got a couple from Mike Bibby and one from Mike Miller as well.
A LeBron James ‘and 1' 3-point play ended a field goal drought of over 6 minutes for Miami, giving them a 1-point lead late in the opening half. A ridiculous move by Dwyane Wade on Kevin Garnett gave him his own 3-point play, putting Miami up by 6 with under a minute left, their largest lead of the game thus far. Wade then hit a triple at the end of the half, and the Heat went into the break with a 47-42 lead.
Boston come out firing in the 2nd half, getting early points from Jermaine O'Neal and Kevin Garnett which started them out on a 17-7 run to take a 2-point lead over the Heat. LeBron James responded with 10 straight points for Miami, and they closed the quarter on an 11-5 run to regain their 5-point lead and take it into the 4th quarter. LeBron had 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting in the 1st half but came alive for the Heat in the 3rd, scoring 12 points while making 5 of his 6 shots, including a pair of triples.
The beginning of the 4th quarter was pretty much all Boston. The Celtics went on a 13-6 run over the first five minutes of the quarter to draw even with the Heat, tying the game at 80. From that point on however, the game belonged to Miami. They went on a 14-0 run in just over 3 minutes, turning the tied score into a commanding 4th quarter lead. The end result was the Heat closing the game by outscoring Boston 22-11 and taking a 2 game to none series lead over the defending Eastern Conference Champs.
It was a very solid game for Mike Bibby, who had been struggling mightily throughout the playoffs for the Heat. He did the majority of his damage in the 1st quarter, but that's just fine as far as I'm concerned. Miami tends to get contributions from the Big 3 and guys like James Jones and Mario Chalmers as they get deeper into the game, but getting a little help early on is something that would greatly benefit Miami. That's just what Bibby did, scoring 6 points on a pair of triples, adding 2 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and a block in 11 1st quarter minutes.
GAME NOTES
- Miami has now won 25 straight games when scoring at least 100 points.
- LeBron James led all scorers with 35 points, adding 7 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal and a block. It was the 21st time in his career that James scored 35+ points in a playoff game.
- To round out that last stat, he has scored 30+ points 37 times in the playoffs, 35+ points 21 times and 40+ points 9 times.
- Chris Bosh had a relatively quiet double double, finishing with 17 points and 11 boards to go along with his 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal.
- D-Wade followed up his 38-point Game 1 with another 28 last night. He went 11-of-13 from the charity stripe and added 8 rebounds.
- Add it all up and the Big 3 combined for 80 points in Game 2 after teaming up for 67 in Game 1.
- The Heat did a good job holding Ray Allen in check, limiting the sharpshooter to just 7 points on 2-for-7 shooting. He only took two shots from downtown, making one.
- Rajon Rondo led all Celtics with 20 points. If Rondo is going to lead Boston in scoring every game that will work out very well for the Heat.
- Mike Bibby finished the game with 8 points for the first time since Game 1 against Philadelphia.
- The Heat made more free throws (27) then Boston attempted (22). Miami finished 27-of-36 from the charity stripe while the Celtics went 17-for-22.
- Miami also won the rebounding battle 44-38.
- Joel Anthony led the Heat bench in scoring with 6 points, in rebounds with 5, in free throws going 4-of-4 and in blocks with 3.
The Heat and Celtics now get several days off before resuming their series in Boston on Saturday night at 8pm. Miami will hopefully get Udonis Haslem back in the lineup by then.