Heat 101, Celtics 92 (Celtics lead 3-1)

Sorry Boston, we’re fresh out of brooms. Also, Dwyane Wade is going to need a chiropractor (or three).

Wade managed to extend Miami’s season at least one game further with his clutch performance today against the Celtics. While his 46 points is noteworthy, he scored 30 points in the second half, including 19 points in the 4th quarter. I can’t remember a greater single-handed performance by a player in recent memory.

To be honest, I thought the Heat were in trouble in the third quarter, thanks to the spectacular play of Rajon Rondo. He racked it up defensively, forcing turnovers and pushing the ball down in transition. What I love about Rondo’s game is his ability to drive and nimbly put up a layup where no defender can block it. You saw this constantly in the third quarter, as he scored 11 of his 23 points in that duration. It looked like the Celtics were going to pull away in the fourth and get ready for Cleveland.

It became special, however, when Miami exploded out of the gate in the 4th quarter, sparking a 25-8 run. I felt like Wade could not miss, hitting 3-ball after 3-ball. Oh yeah, and he posterized KG as well (see above-left).  I knew Boston was in trouble when Rasheed Wallace decided to be Antione Walker and shoot some off-balanced three pointer (sigh…). When will they learn?

Anyway, I have to give kudos to Dwyane Wade. He seriously wasn’t getting much help from his team (outside of Q-Rich, who had 20 points and 7 rebounds), but he never quit. He took matters into his own hands and grinded out the victory. Wade easily could have packed it in and began his offseason, frustrated by the lack of support he got from his teammates. But, he will live to play at least one more game in a Heat uniform…

"HE'S ON FIRE!!!!"

TRBL stat of the series so far – Speaking of lack of support – Jermaine O’Neal, what are you doing?! Shooting 6/34 from the field in four games for a whopping 17.1% FG percentage. When I saw the stat on ESPN that he might break the shot-clock era record for lowest FG percentage in a playoff series, I was stunned. I had no idea he was playing THAT badly.

INCRBL game 4 stat – Ray Allen shot 40% from the free throw line, including 3 huge misses at the end of the game. I think dinosaurs roamed the earth the last time Allen shot that poorly from the charity stripe.

-Commish

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Cavaliers 121, Bulls 98 (Cavs lead 3-1)

What this Loss Means for Cleveland: Motivation to annihilate the Bulls in game four.

After the Cavaliers lost to the Bulls in their last game, this is how I summed up what I thought would happen in game four. A few days later, I’m feeling like I may actually know what I’m talking about for once. The Cavaliers started the game off leading by three points after the first quarter. Then in each following quarter, the Cavs increased their lead outscoring the Bulls by 9 points in the second quarter, and 13 points in the third quarter. I remember looking at the score near the end of the third quarter after recording our podcast, and saying to Basher, “Dude the Cavs are going to score 120 points in this game.”

Shooter’s favorite player of all time, LeBron James, lived up to the hype dropping a triple double in this game: 37 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists. The Bulls looked hopeless out on the court, and were unable to match the energy of anyone on Cleveland. The only player who had a good game for the Bulls was Joakim Noah who had 21 points and 20 rebounds. Still, Noah’s career game was no match for the offensive output of the Cavaliers.

Antawn Jamison had 24 points and 7 rebounds, while Mo Williams added 19 points, including three treys. Derrick Rose had 20 points, but only 5 assists, while backcourt teammate Kirk Hinrich could only muster 10 points. In game three, Hinrich’s scoring over 20 points was a key to the Bulls victory.

What the Win Means for Cleveland: They can exhale after the win, as many analysts thought the Cav’s could live a parrallel fate to the the Lakers, who are evened up 2-2 after losing two straight to the Thunder.

What the Loss Means for Chicago: They’re done.

-G