On a night where Dwyane Wade went 33 minutes without scoring, Lebron James picked up the slack as he has done throughout this post-season. His 35 points sparked the Heat to a 101-93 victory. As much of the basketball world marveled at Derrick Rose all year and this playoff season has been about the re-discovery of Dirk Nowitzki's greatness, King James made another statement regarding his place in the NBA. The stat line looks nice: 35 points/6 rebounds/6 assists/3 blocks/2 steals, but perhaps the most impressive part of Lebron's game tonight was his stifling defense on Chicago's best player. Although Miami used a variety of defenders against the league MVP, James was on him throughout most of the fourth quarter and overtime and Rose was limited to 23 points on 8 of 27 shooting from the field.

The win gives Miami a commanding 3-1 lead in the best of seven series, which returns to Chicago for game five Thursday night.  

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Dwyane Wade played arguably his worst four games of the 2010-2011 season against the Boston Celtics. In game one of the Eastern Conference semifinals, he more than erased those painful memories. Wade scored 38 points in the Heat's 99-90 victory. In the four previous meetings this season, Wade averaged 13 points and 5 turnovers a game on 28% shooting, by far his worst numbers against any team. This afternoon, however, he was ready. After the game Wade said, "I wanted to come out today and be a leader." Leading by example is the most effective form and as if to make that point, Wade came out onto the AAA floor a full three hours before gametime to work on his shot. (He went 14 for 21 from the field.)

The game was physical throughout with double technicals, flagrant fouls and one ejection (Paul Pierce.) Involved in two of those episodes was Miami sharp shooter, James Jones. Besides getting into it with Jermaine O'Neal and Paul Pierce, Jones went off for 25 points. He was 5 of 7 from beyond the arc and a perfect 10 for 10 from the charity stripe. Lebron James had another all-around solid effort, scoring 22 points to go along with 6 rebounds and 5 assists.

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Once again, the Miami Heat and Washington Wizards showed that there is definitely some bad blood between these clubs on opposite sides of the standings. Number one draft pick, John Wall, was ejected after taking a swing at Miami center Zydrunas Ilgauskas in the second quarter.  The Heat won in a game that should not have been this close. Coming off the heals of the loss in Cleveland the night before, a 123-107 victory against an 18-56 squad was not the confidence-builder Spoelstra undoubtedly had in mind. Miami was led by Lebron James who had 35 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 5 steals. Dwyane Wade chipped in with 33 points and 9 assists.Leading all scorers was Jordan Crawford of the Wizards with 39.

Wall was aggressively defending Z at the three point arc when Ilgauskas began protecting the ball, accidentally hitting Wall at least once with his elbow. Wall took a swing at Z. JaValle McGee shows up to sort things out, Juwan Howard pushes McGee. Washington coach Flip Saunders steps into the fray...

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For the first time in Heat franchise history, three players scored 30 or more points as Miami defeats the Houston Rockets 125-119. Led by Lebron James with 33 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, the Heat overcame some highly suspect defensive play early to keep pace in the Eastern Conference. Chris Bosh had 31 points and 12 boards. Dwyane Wade added 30 to go along with 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocked shots. I'm not sure when three players from the same team each had 30/10 nights, but I know it has been at least thirty years. Friday night's win against the Sixers was the first time in 29 years one team had two 30/10's and a 20/10, so tonight's showing by the Big 3 was truly something special.

Things were not looking so great when the Heat got a scare in the second quarter with Wade going down hard, bruising his tail bone. Thankfully he would return and helped secure the win with a spirited fourth quarter. Mike Bibby played well again in his starting role, chipping in 14 points and going 4-5 from behind the arc. The bench for Miami did not fare as well with House/Miller/Jones combining for a 0-6 night from three point land.

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Dwyane Wade scored 39 points and Lebron James added 32 as Miami defeated Philadelphia in a game that started out as a turnover fest. The Heat commited 13 turnovers in the first half as the Sixers capitalized, building a 42-26 lead midway through the second quarter. A 23-2 run sent Miami into half time up by a point at 51-50.

The second half began with Philadelphia showing their well-balanced half court offense and a much-improved defense. At times, Miami struggled to keep up with the young, athletic squad. But in the fourth quarter, the Heat went on another big run, this time a 20-4 run settlled the matter and it was the Sixers who looked thoroughly tired.

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There was a time when the above headline would have meant something. But alas, this is not 2005 and these Pistons have been in disarray all season. Players have been in open mutiny and refer to head coach John Keuster as Sean Penn (in honor of the 1995 film "Dead Man Walking") None of this seemed to matter, however, for the first three quarters of tonight's game at the Palace. Miami was playing sloppy and looked markedly uninspired in Mike Bibby's first start at point guard for the Heat. Detroit took advantage by shooting the ball very effectively: over 60% in the first half. 

Despite the overal lackluster play of the Heat in the first two quarters, Mike Bibby's three point shot right before half-time cut the Pistons' lead to only two at 55-53. Detroit was able to extend the lead to 11 midway through the third quarter and it looked like maybe Miami may have taken the troubled Pistons squad for lightweights. At the end of three, Detroit led by 8.

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