Heat defeat Celtics in game 7 to move on to the NBA Finals

The Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 101-88 in game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to advance to the NBA Finals, where the team will face the Oklahoma City Thunder.  The Heat's big 3 of Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh combined for 73 points, with James leading the way with 31.  Miami knew going into the game that if it were to lose, there would likely be many changes made to the team, from a possible firing of head coach Erik Spoelstra to a breaking up of the big 3.  James, who has faced far more scrutiny than any other player in this postseason had a brilliant series averaging over 33 points and 11 rebounds per game, and willing the Heat back from a 3-2 series deficit with a game 6 performance for the ages.
The Celtics' Rajon Rondo had yet another playoff triple-double, finishing the game with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists.  Boston received no help from its bench, as its starters scored all but 2 of the team's points.  The Celtics may have played their last game of the big 4 era, with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen both free agents at the end of the season.
Game 1 of the NBA Finals begins on Tuesday at 9:00 as Miami  plays the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

Lebron scores 45 as Heat force game 7

With the Miami Heat on the brink of elimination, down 3-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals to the aging Boston Celtics and facing a firestorm of scrutiny, Lebron James played one of the greatest games of his career as the Heat demolished the Celtics 98-79 to force a game 7.  Lebron had a playoff record tying 30 of his 45 points before halftime along with 15 rebounds and 5 assists in a breathtaking display of athletic dominance.
Since leaving Cleveland for Miami James has faced constant criticism from the media and the public.  From "The Decision," James' announcement on live television that he would leave Cleveland to "take my talents to south beach", to his statements that the Heat would win "not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven" championships, every comment that James has made over the past two years has been dissected and only added to the pressure on the Heat to win immediately.  Had Miami lost, head coach Erik Spoelstra may have been fired, and the big 3 of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh may have been broken up.  Thanks to James' brilliance the questions about the Heat's future can be turned aside, at least until game 7 is played.  Miami's victory sets up a huge game Saturday night, with the winner advancing to the NBA finals to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Celtics win game 5, one win away from NBA finals berth

The Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 94-90 to take a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.  In Winning their third consecutive game, Boston moved to within a win of returning to the NBA finals for the third time in the past five seasons.  Kevin Garnett continued his phenomenal postseason by posting another dominant performance and finishing with 26 points and 11 rebounds.  Garnett has turned back the clock this postseason, playing as well as he has since joining the Celtics five years ago.  Paul Pierce scored 19 points for the Celtics, and despite struggling with his shot all evening, drained a huge 3-pointer over Lebron James with under a minute left in the game to put the Celtics up by 4.
The Heat received 30 points from James and 27 from Dwyane Wade, including 14 in the 4th quarter, but the supporting cast did not show up ready to play.  Throughout the series Boston has repeatedly had role players like Mickael Pietrus, who had two crucial 3-pointers in the waning minutes of the game, step up and contribute, while Miami has relied on solely Wade and James.  Chris Bosh made his return to the Heat's lineup, playing for the first time since game 1 of the Conference Semifinals, and was effective scoring 9 points in only 14 minutes of playing time.  He will have to be able to play for longer stretches of game 6 for the Heat to have a chance to extend the series.
Throughout the game the Heat looked lost in their half-court offense, failed to get back on defense to stop the Celtics' fast breaks and struggled to make the correct defensive rotations.  Much credit has to be given to Boston head coach Doc Rivers for outcoaching his Miami counterpart Erik Spoelstra, and for electing to confound the Heat by switching between zone and man-to-man defenses in the 4th quarter.
At the All-Star break Boston had a 15-17 record and was considering trading away key components of the team's core.  Since then the team has a 35-17 record and is proving that it is not too old to compete for a championship.

Boston wins game 4 in OT to even series at 2-2

The Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 93-91 in overtime to tie the Eastern Conference Finals at 2-2.  
The Celtics raced out to a 61-47 halftime lead and made 6 of their first 8 3-pointers, paced by Paul Pierce who had 18 of his 23 points in the first half and Rajon Rondo who had 10 of his 15 dazzling assists in the opening half.  During a half-time interview with Doris Burke, Rondo fired a shot at the Heat, claiming that what allowed Boston to achieve the commanding half-time lead was the Heat "complaining and crying to the referees in transition."
In the second half the Heat, playing the same small lineup that allowed them to almost come back from a 24 point deficit in game 3, furiously chipped away at the Celtics' lead, eventually tying the game in the 4th quarter.  With a chance to win the game Lebron James, who finished with 29 points and had just made a 3-pointer to tie the game at 89, drove into the teeth of the swarming Celtics' defense and was forced to throw an errant pass to Udonis Haslem who threw up an off balance shot that fell well short of the rim.
Both Pierce and James fouled out early in the overtime period.  Rondo scored the Celtics' last 3 points in the period to give the team a 2 point lead.  In the final possession of the game the Heat ran an isolation play for Dwyane Wade, who shot poorly throughout the game yet finished with 20 points.  Wade pump faked beyond the 3-point line, causing Marquis Daniels to leap into the air, but instead of jumping into Daniels to draw a foul and a trip to the free throw line with a chance to win the game, Wade regained his balance and took a 3-pointer that rattled off the rim.
Six Celtics had double digit points in the game, including Keyon Dooling whose infectious energy off the bench has been a huge factor all series long.

Celtics win game 3 and cut series deficit to 2-1

The Boston Celtics cut the Miami Heat's series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals to 2-1 with a crucial 101-91 victory in game 3, despite coming off an exhausting and heartbreaking overtime loss to the Heat in game 2.  Boston withstood a first quarter offensive onslaught by Lebron James who had 16 points in the opening quarter and finished the game 34 points on 16-26 shooting.  After allowing the Heat to score several easy baskets in transition off of made field goals by the Celtics, Boston clamped down defensively, allowing the Heat to score only 35 points in the two subsequent quarters and building a 22 point lead.  Kevin Garnett scored 24 points and added 11 rebounds and helped the Celtics impose their will on the Heat in the paint.  Garnett showed off his legendary intensity in the second quarter after a hard foul in which he painfully landed on his back, by doing pushups on his knuckles.

Boston out rebounded Miami 44-32 despite being the worst rebounding team in the NBA in the regular season.  Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo set the tone for the Celtics offensively scoring 23 and 21 points respectively.  Rondo, who added 10 assists, did a tremendous job dictating the pace of the game, setting up teammates like Marquis Daniels who gave the Celtics a boost off the bench, and craftily making shots, including a beautiful layup off of his signature fake-behind the back pass.
The Heat made a comeback in the 4th quarter, cutting a 24 point deficit down to 8, while playing a small lineup featuring Lebron James at center.  Ultimately the Celtics were able to close out the game, boosting their confidence and setting up highly anticipated game 4 Sunday night.

Heat Survive Overtime Thriller, overcome performance for the ages from Rondo

The Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 115-111 in overtime to take a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.  Several players on both sides put together workmanlike efforts, grinding out over 40 minutes of hard fought gameplay, however no one could match the legendary performance put together by Rajon Rondo of the Celtics.  Rondo played all 53 minutes of the game, not resting for even a second, scored a career high 44 points and added 10 assists and 8 rebounds.  No other player in the Celtics' storied history has ever had over 40 points with double digit assists in a playoff game.  Rondo excelled in draining jump shots all evening, supposedly the greatest weakness in his game, and even made two 3-pointers.  Rondo's shooting forced the Heat to adjust their defensive game plan and switch on every pick and roll involving Rondo.
The Heat led by 6 going into the 4th quarter but converted only 4 field goals in the quarter.  Ray Allen, hampered by bone spurs in his ankles, willed himself through 43 minutes of gameplay and scored 13 points, including a game tying 3-pointer that sent the game to overtime.
Lebron James had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, but missed a fadeaway 20 foot jumpshot over the 6'1" Rondo.  James, who took 24 free throws in the game and finished with 34 points, has to be more assertive at the end of the game.  He held the ball for the final shot in the game, but only began to make his move with under 4 seconds remaining in the game.  If he had attacked earlier and used his size advantage over Rondo to attack the rim he would have likely been sent to the free throw line with a chance to win the game.  Having said that, James' decision to take the final shot in the game is a huge step forward and may signal the end of his late game woes.  After having been criticized numerous times over the course of his career as a Heat for his refusal to take over games down the stretch, Lebron's willingness to take the final shot has to be viewed as a huge positive for the Heat.
In overtime James and Dwyane Wade, who finished with 23 points despite having been limited to only 2 first half points by the Celtics, demonstrated why they are among the game's elite, aggressively attacking the hoop to close out the Celtics.  Rondo had all 12 of the Celtics' points in the overtime period, which was marred by a questionable decision by the referees.  The referees incredulously did not call a foul on a play in which Rondo was obviously smacked on the head by Wade, resulting in a game swinging dunk by Udonis Haslem at the other end.
The Heat's role players played very well, led by Mario Chalmers who had 22 points in 45 minutes.  The Celtics poured their hearts out in the game, and their fans have to hope that they have enough left in the tank to win game 3 on their home court Friday night, in order to avoid a 3-0 deficit from which no team has ever returned in NBA playoff history.

Wade and James dominate the Celtics in game 1 of the Conference Finals

Lebron James put up another tremendous playoff performance Monday night, as the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 93-79 in game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.  James, recently named the NBA's MVP for the third time in his illustrious career, finished the evening with 32 points and 13 rebounds, and made his presence felt on both ends of the court.  Teammate Dwyane Wade, an 8-time All-Star, provided James with plenty of support, scoring an efficient 22 points on only 13 shots, and adding 7 assists, including a beautiful full court pass to James, which cemented his reputation as the league's greatest quarterback.
Despite struggling through a first quarter in which they scored only 11 points, the Celtics managed to tie the game at halftime.  However, Miami responded by shutting down the Celtics in the second half, allowing only 33 points.  If the Celtics want to have a chance in the series they have to find a way to score more easily.  Five technical fouls were called on the Celtics, including an egregious call on head coach Doc Rivers who simply uttered the words "come on Ed" to referee Ed Malloy.
Even without Chris Bosh, Miami's all-star power forward who is out indefinitely with an abdominal strain, the Heat dominated the Celtics in the paint, out rebounding the Celtics 48-33 and blocking 11 shots compared to only 1 blocked shot by the Celtics.