Peninsula is Mightier

Heat travel back to Indiana looking to close out series

2012-05-24T05:00:00Z

The Miami Heat are back in the drivers seat, but need one more win to advance to their second consecutive Eastern Conference Finals. Following a very convincing win in Game 5, the Heat will have to come away with a second win in the Pacers building if they want to avoid a Game 7. If Miami can figure out how to play this game the way they have played their last 6 quarters then there shouldn't be a problem.

As if playing on the road wasn't challenging enough, Miami will have to win this one without the services of the top two power forwards on their depth chart. Already playing minus Chris Bosh for the majority of the series, the Heat will also be without Udonis Haslem for Game 6. Haslem was suspended by the NBA for one game for his flagrant foul on the Pacers' Tyler Hansbrough during their win in Game 5.

The timing couldn't be worse for Miami to be without Udonis, as he has been playing his best basketball of the post season in his last two games. In Game's 1-3 Haslem scored just 6 total points on 18.1% shooting while grabbing a total of 12 rebounds. In the last two games of the series however, UD has come away with a 14 point 4 rebound effort in Game 4 and followed it up with 10 points and 6 rebounds in Game 5.

He shot an impressive 5-of-6 from the field in both games, but now the Heat will have to find another source of productive ‘big guy' minutes to fill the newly created void. Odds are that we'll see a lot more of Joel Anthony and Ronny Turiaf, who have been playing some very good defense in the last two games, as well as LeBron James sliding down and playing a few more minutes at power forward then usual.

Miami is going to have to find a way to continue keeping the Pacers' big guys at bay if they want to end the series tonight. In the Heat's last two wins, Udonis has averaged 21 minutes per game, but Miami does have a lot of versatility on their roster. The key is getting production from those players; Shane Battier stepped up in Game 5, hitting 4 trey's including 3 in the 1^st quarter to set the tone.

A similar effort by Battier will go a long way towards a Miami victory in Indiana tonight. The Heat could also use some big minutes from Mike Miller, who has provided some quietly strong minutes lately, but will need to show up on the scoresheet as well if he wants to help fill the Haslem-void. Then there is Mario Chalmers, or James Jones, or Anthony, or Turiaf...we just have to wait and see who steps up, or if it's a collective effort.

The Pacers are also dealing with a bit of uncertainty at the moment, as two of their starters and main contributors are hobbled. Danny Granger and David West are both suffering from ankle injuries, and West also has been dealing with a knee injury to boot. It seems that Granger has the more severe injury, but if I had to guess I'd say that both players will definitely be in the lineup and try to give it a go. It is an elimination game for them, after all.

The bottom line is that the Heat are going into a very hostile environment with several obstacles to overcome, but these kind of games are the tests that championship teams pass. Dwyane Wade and LeBron James seem to be gaining some momentum, but can their teammates add enough production to send Miami back to Round 3? We'll find out tonight at 8o'clock. Lets Go Heat!!!

How can Heat close out Pacers without Haslem?

2012-05-24T00:42:25Z

Udonis Haslem's flagrant foul on Tyler Hansbrough earned him a suspension for Game 6 of Miami's second-round series against the Indiana Pacers. Some could say this suspension comes at a bad time for the lifetime Heat player. After struggling with his shot for the entire season, Haslem shot 5-of-6 in Games 4 and 5 to supplement the Heat offense. Now without Chris Bosh and Haslem, how do the Heat close out the Indiana Pacers in Game 6?

In the last two games of this series, the Heat have played well with and without Haslem. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade dominated each third quarter in Games 4 and 5 while Haslem sat on the bench, but the 6-foot-8 Miami native made four field goals in the fourth quarter of Game 4 to protect the Heat lead. It's also noteworthy to acknowledge that the team that has won the rebounding battle has won each game in this series, and Haslem is a good rebounder.

Erik Spoelstra will likely use the same starting lineup he used in the previous two games - Mario Chalmers, Wade, James, Shane Battier and Ronny Turiaf. Frank Vogel may have to use a different starting lineup, though. Danny Granger and David West both sustained injuries in Game 5; West is expected to play but Granger is listed as day-to-day. Battier has done a phenomenal job of defending West and freeing James from that responsibility, and the former Duke standout may play a few more minutes at the four in Game 6.

Battier made four 3-pointers in Game 5, and Miami's 3-point shooting becomes more important without the mid-range shooting of Haslem and Bosh. Mike Miller's continuous injury problems make him a question mark on offense, but Battier, Chalmers and James Jones have to knock down their open shots to space the floor. If not, the Pacers will swarm Wade and James and make it tougher for them to score.

West's injury could be even more significant than Haslem's absence. If West is limited and cannot play a lot, Vogel will have to turn to Hansbrough and Lou Amundson. Both of those players are labeled as "energy guys" whose games don't employ the strength that West has. Miami will be more comfortable using smaller lineups against those two players. Defending West in Game 2 proved to be "taxing" for James, but James won't have to use as much strength defending Hansbrough. James will have to grab lots of rebounds in Game 6 for the Heat to win, as now Miami will miss two of the team's best rebounders. Mario Chalmers grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in Game 5, and the Heat perimeter players should not try to "leak out" after Pacers field goal attempts but instead crash the glass.

Will James have to play 48 minutes now that both Bosh and Haslem are out? Haslem typically plays in the second and fourth quarters - where James receives his brief moments of rest. It may not be wise to play Joel Anthony and Ronny Turiaf in tandem since neither of those players can score outside of a layup. The Heat may use a lineup of, say, Chalmers, Wade, Jones, Miller and Anthony while James rests. James will probably play around 42-44 minutes, and Miami should just make sure that the Pacers don't go on a run while the three-time MVP sits.

The injuries to Granger and West could put the Pacers in a tough position to force Game 7 against the Heat with or without Haslem. But the Heat's 3-point shooters need to space the floor without Haslem's jumper, and James may need another double-digit rebounding effort for the Heat to win.

NBA suspends Miami Heat's Dexter Pittman three games, Udonis Haslem one game

2012-05-23T23:00:00Z

The NBA has announced that the Miami Heat's Dexter Pittman has been suspended for 3 games without pay and Udonis Haslem 1 game without pay for their flagrant fouls during Tuesday's Game 5 against the Indiana Pacers. Both had their flagrant fouls upgraded from Flagrant One to Flagrant Two, as did the Pacers' Tyler Hansbrough, who made contact with Dwyane Wade's head and caused him to bleed.

Haslem's foul took place shortly after that, as Udonis also made contact to the head and upper body of Hansbrough. It's not terribly surprising that Haslem was suspended for one game, but its even less surprising that Dexter Pittman was suspended for multiple games for his elbow to the neck of the Pacers' Lance Stephenson.

Stephenson had a target on his back after making a ‘choke' reference towards LeBron James during the 3^rd quarter of Game 3 in Indiana. There was a brief altercation between Stephenson and Heat reserve Juwan Howard prior to Game 4, who made it perfectly clear that nobody on the Heat appreciated the lack of respect to one of the leagues best players by one that had done very little to make himself relevant to anyone outside of Indiana.

During the final minutes of Game 5, with all bench players in the game, Pittman took it upon himself to show Stephenson just what the Heat thought of his act of disrespect. As Stephenson ran towards the basket without the ball, Pittman took a couple steps toward Stephenson and gave him an elbow to the neck. It was definitely a dirty play, and Pittman deserves every bit of his penalty. Both suspensions will begin immediately, with neither player eligible to play in Game 6 on Thursday night.

Poll

What do you think of the NBA's decision to suspend Dexter Pittman and Udonis Haslem?

LeBron James earns spot on All-Defensive Team

2012-05-23T17:54:45Z

Despite defending players from Derrick Rose to Dwight Howard throughout the year, LeBron James came in fourth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting. But James received the most votes for the All-Defensive First Team, joining Chris Paul, Tony Allen, Serge Ibaka and Howard on the list. The award's winner, Tyson Chandler, was voted for the All-Defensive Second Team. Media members vote on individual awards -- like the MVP or Defensive Player of the Year -- but coaches vote on the All-NBA Defensive Teams and All-NBA Teams. James has now earned a spot on the All-NBA Defensive First Team for four straight seasons, from 2009 to 2012. He was voted on the All-Defensive Second Team in 2005 and 2007.

Dwyane Wade was the only other Heat player to receive votes for the All-NBA Defensive Team, but did not make either the first or second group.

Heat beat down Pacers 115-83 with a balanced attack for 3-2 series lead

2012-05-23T08:00:00Z

The Miami Heat took control of their hotly contested Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Indiana Pacers in blowout fashion with a 115-83 victory for the 3-2 series lead. LeBron James once again led the way with a second consecutive "almost-triple-double" consisting of 30 points on 12-19 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds and 8 assists alongside an efficient game by Dwyane Wade with 28 points on 10-17 shooting.

But this wasn't just a two-man show this time around with just about every Heat player who played substantial minutes having solid games, nullifying the Pacers' depth that was one of the few strengths they had over the Heat. Shane Battier's 4-5 shooting from beyond the arc was crucial to get his shooting touch back and helped set the tone for a hot start in the first quarter, but it was his lockdown defense on the bigger David West that was an even bigger factor for the Heat. Udonis Haslem's own shooting touch thankfully didn't leave him after Game 4 with a 5-6 shooting performance tonight for another double-digit scoring total to go along with 6 rebounds. Mario Chalmers somehow led the team in 11 rebounds (his career high) and Ronny Turiaf continued to lead the team in over the top celebrations. In summary, a good time was had by all. The Heat set a postseason franchise record for field goal percentage and finished a single point short of tying the team record for total points.

The Indiana Pacers meanwhile were a mess on offense and trailed the entire game after a quick Battier three-pointer to start the game, failing to string together any sort of scoring run to put a dent on a Heat lead that kept growing and growing throughout the game. They allowed a 9-point halftime deficit balloon to a 19-point deficit after the all-important third quarter. To make matters worse, they lost Danny Granger (who had first rolled his ankle in the second quarter) and West to injuries in that quarter as well.

When you're top performer is Paul George with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists then you're in big trouble. Roy Hibbert had been dominant in stretches of this series but only made 3 field goals tonight, one of them courtesy of a lucky three-point heave at the end of the shot clock during one of the many Pacers possessions that went nowhere. He only had one block and did little to protect the paint. His lack of aggression couldn't even be chalked up to foul trouble as he only had two of them.

The rebounding battle was won again by the Heat 49-35, continuing the trend where the team that has won the rebounding edge has also gone on to the win the game. The Heat also scored 22 fast break points compared to just 2 from the Pacers.

"Defense is always on top of my list," answered LeBron when Jason Jackson from Sun Sports asked him what his keys to the victory were. "The fact that we were able to get stops and turn those stops into transition points and then share the ball offensively are great ingredients for us. Also the rebounding. When we rebound like this, we have a high percentage in wins this year so that's a big part of our game."

The game was very physical tonight with Wade receiving a cut to his face from Tyler Hansbrough at almost the same place that Haslem received his cut in the prior game. Udonis returned the favor to Hansbrough moments later with a blow to the face as the Pacers forward attempted a jump shot, earning a flagrant foul in the process. Dexter Pittman chipped in during garbage time with a strategically-placed forearm to Lance Stephenson, who had made a choking gesture to mock LeBron James earlier in the series.

The Heat will look to finish the series Thursday in Indiana with the tipoff scheduled at 8:00 PM.

Highlights Heat vs Pacers Game 5 HD

2012-05-23T07:07:59Z

Highlights Heat vs Pacers Game 5 HD

Dwyane Wade presser postgame Heat vs Pacers Game 5 HD

2012-05-23T06:30:33Z

Dwyane Wade presser postgame Heat vs Pacers Game 5 HD

NBA Playoffs Open Game Thread: Indiana Pacers at Miami Heat

2012-05-22T23:00:14Z

2011-12 NBA Playoffs: Round 2 Game 5
	@
2-2		2-2
May 22nd, 2012
American Airlines Arena
8:00 PM
TV: TNT -- Radio: 790 AM
Probable Starters
George Hill	PG	Mario Chalmers
Paul George	SG	Dwyane Wade
Danny Granger	SF	Shane Battier
David West	PF	LeBron James
Roy Hibbert	C	Ronny Turiaf