Linsanity has been calmed, at least until after the All-Star break. Perhaps everyone should have seen it coming, but Jeremy Lin and the New York Knicks struggled on Thursday night against a team that played at a higher level from whistle to whistle. The Miami Heat played great team defense while the big three scored very efficiently in a 102-88 victory.

The Heat have won eight straight games, their best streak of the season, and they have the best record in the NBA. Miami forced Lin to turn the ball over eight times and forced the Knicks to turn the ball over 19 times, grabbing 12 steals in a fantastic defensive performance. They also blocked 10 shots, with five of those blocks coming from Joel Anthony.

Amare Stoudemire helped to carry the Knicks in the first half, but just two of his 13 points came in the second half. Carmelo Anthony struggled shooting the ball, dropping 19 points on 7-20 shooting. Lin scored just eight points on 1-11 shooting, with six of his points coming from the free throw line.

Chris Bosh led all scorers with 25 points, but there wasn't much separation between the big three. Dwyane Wade scored 22 points and LeBron James scored 20. James also had nine rebounds, eight assists, five steals and two blocks in a fantastic complete performance.

For more on the two teams, check out New York Knicks blog Posting And Toasting and Miami Heat blog Peninsula Is Mightier.