HEAT TURN THINGS ROUND

 

(Image taken from NBA.com).

 

After Games 1 and 2 of the 2006 NBA Finals the Mavericks had done what they needed to do. They'd won both games, shut down Shaq and largely shut down the Heat - chasing the Eastern Conference champions but to Miami in disarray. With the next three games on their turf, the Heat really had to win all three to keep themselves in with a chance of winning the title.

Well things started pretty solidly for the Heat in Game 3 with Shaq, Udonis Haslam and particularly Dwayne Wade putting up the big numbers as the hugry Heat loked for payback after what happened in Texas. Dirk Nowitski tried to get his act together in the second quarter and at one point the game was tied at 40 but the Heat simply went on another surge and ended the first half of the game 52-43 up.

In the third quarter though the Mavs got mad, and Nowitski, Josh Howard and Jason Terry all combined to dominate the quarter and put their side 77-68 up going into the fourth. Only to throw it away and the white-hot Wade took over, picking up 42 points, Gary Payton hit a late jumper, Nowitski missed a thre throw and the Heat won 98-96.

Next up was Game 4 and Wade was not done yet. Jumpers, check. Three pointers, check. Alonzo Mourning solid on defence, check and James Posey's turn to run solid backup for the big two, check. Jason Terry got a dunk on Shaq but Nowitski was never in the mixer and the Heat blasted into a 54-44 halftime lead having led since halfway into the first quarter.

The second half was where the Mavericks really got massacred. The Avery Johnson wall had clearly been left behind in Dallas because Shaq and Wade were just dancing through everything backed up by Jason Williams, Antoine Walker and Posey. Stackhouse managed to send Shaq to the deck one time and Nowitski twisted his ankle which simply summed up the Mavs game. Heat won 98-74 to tie the series.

So with the series now a three gamer it was on to game 5 with the Mavs looking to mean business by going 4-0 up at the start and making the early running untill a Posey threepointer gave the Heat their first lead halfway into the first quarter. Late in the second quarter though the Mavs retook the lead through a Terry jumper and pulled away to a 51-43 halftime lead.

Well the Heat started to make their way back in the third quarter, cutting the gap own to one going into the fourth at the start of which a Posey jumper gave them a 72-71 lead. Two Harris free throws gave the Mavs the lead back though and the Mavs won the resulting exchange of shots only for the Heat to surge again and Wade to swing things to 89-88 with 1:40 on the clock. Nowitski then levelled things with a free throw and the fourth quarter ended tied at 93.

So it was overtime. Wade opened to OT scoring only for Terry to reply with two free throws. Shaq and Harris exchanged jumpers. Dampier missed one of two three throws and that game the Heat their opening, Payton hitting a jumper to put his side ahead with 29 seconds on the clock. Nowitski struck with nine seconds left only for Wade(who else?) to sink two free throws and win the game 101-100 for the Heat. And now it;s the Mavs that are getting chased home.

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