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| Chris Bosh was inserted into the starting lineup and he came up big with a double-double (Photo by the Associated Press) |
For the second straight game, the Heat was able to start strong early as they built a commanding 17-point lead in the first half. The game started with the Heat up 18-2 and they led for the whole game. The Thunder made their expected run and was able to come as close as 2 points but Durant missed his tying jumper in the last 10 seconds. The Thunder lost at home for the first time in the playoffs and the series shifts to Miami for the next 3 games. There was no comeback for OKC in Game 2 as the Heat 3 and Battier came up big all game long to keep the Thunder at bay. No lead is safe when Durant and Westbrook are on your team. KD erupted in the 4th quarter again to score 16 points but his team fell a little short on their comeback bid. The Heat was lucky to escape with a win because the Thunder was right there at the end.
#Heat3 #Battier
Chris Bosh started for the Heat and he produced great numbers with 16 points and 15 rebounds. He had a double-double by halftime. Bosh also did not settle for perimeter shots as he attacked the paint more (got blocked more too) and he was more active on defense. Dwyane Wade played better overall and he was more aggressive at the start as he had 11 points in the first half. Wade did not get outplayed by Westbrook and that resulted in a Heat win. LeBron James still scored his 32 points but the help from the others and the additional rest allowed him to make clutch free throws at the end. Meanwhile, Shane Battier was on fire from downtown again. He made five treys and had 17 points for the 2nd straight game. Battier also played decent defense as he guarded every position.
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until Kevin Durant exploded in the fourth quarter (Photo by Getty Images) |
#missedcall #clutch
Miami was fortunate that Kevin Durant missed his tying jumper with the score at 98-96. The Heat was luckier that no foul call was called on LeBron. Most people believe that it was a controversial missed call by the referees. When I was watching that play in real time, I did not see LeBron bump/hit KD as he made his move towards the hoop. On the replay, there was some contact from James but it was more incidental and the bump hardly had an effect on Durant's jumper. The shot was very make-able for KD and he missed it. Maybe the referees wanted to make it up for the Heat because Durant escaped an offensive foul call for his 6th foul earlier in the game. James was perfect at the line, going 12-12 and he made a tough bank shot too. LBJ was clutch tonight and so was Durant with his 16 points. Even D-Wade made clutch plays with a fadeaway and nice assist to Bosh but Wade had a crucial turnover that led to a Durant trey.
#efficiency #shotsfired
Russell Westbrook had another great game when you look at his stats. He had 27 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists with just 2 turnovers. The bad part about his game was his shot selection and floor leadership. Russ jacked up 26 shots and made only 10. It was not a very efficient game for him because his other teammates should have shot the ball more compared to him. Durant was on fire in the fourth but he took 22 shots while James Harden took 11 shots for 21 points. Westbrook started slowly again in the 1st half, just like Game 1 and he was erratic with his handling of the plays and he took difficult shots that were not falling. In contrast, Dwyane Wade had a more controlled game and was more efficient, thus a Heat victory. The main match-up is Durant vs LeBron but the Wade vs Westbrook competition might be the more important.
#Tweet of the Night
Kevin Durant: "I just missed the shot." *drops mic*
#KeyStats
- Ibaka had 5 blocks in Game 2 after getting zero in Game 1
- Thunder are 9-1 at home and 4-3 on the road
- Westbrook is 20-50 while Durant is 24-42 in two games
- Battier is 9-13 in treys in two games
- Second time the Thunder never led in a game for the whole season
- Bosh has 7 offensive rebounds
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