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> Surging Forward And Moving The Ball With Flair
ruogu1234
postare Dec 21 2019, 07:55 AM
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MIAMI -- Strange as it sounds, missing shots worked wonders for the Miami Heat. And after the Brooklyn Nets went nearly 2 minutes -- a basketball eternity -- without the ball down the stretch, the two-time defending NBA champions would soon find themselves two wins from another trip to the Eastern Conference finals. LeBron James scored 22 points, Chris Bosh added 18 and the Heat pulled away late to beat the Nets 94-82 on Thursday night, taking a 2-0 lead in the East semifinals. "To be able to get some stops like that at the end, and then execute, its something thats critical in this series," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. Dwyane Wade had 14 and Ray Allen scored 13 for the Heat, who tied a franchise record with their eighth straight playoff victory. Theyll go for No. 9 on Saturday night, when the best-of-seven series shifts to Brooklyn for Game 3. For the second straight game, Miami had five players in double figures. "Thats what our team is all about," James said. "We dont really care who scores." Mirza Teletovic set a Nets playoff record with six 3-pointers, on his way to a 20-point night off the bench. Shaun Livingston scored 15, and Paul Pierce and Joe Johnson each added 13 more for the Nets. Deron Williams was 0 for 9 from the field, the worst shooting night of his career. "That one hurt," Nets coach Jason Kidd said. "We were right there. We gave ourselves, on the road, an opportunity against the world champs. We let the game slip away. That one possession when they got four offensive rebounds, it didnt lose the game for us." It was three rebounds, but no matter. It was still a backbreaker for the Nets. Teletovic scored inside with 3:39 left to get Brooklyn within eight. For the next 100 seconds, Miami kept possession. James missed a 3-pointer, and Allen -- who led Miami with eight rebounds -- manoeuvred his way around four Nets to grab the rebound. James missed again, and Wade grabbed that board. James missed a layup, but Bosh controlled that board. And finally, almost mercifully, Wade found James for a layup with 1:59 remaining. The lead was 10, the outcome decided. "That was a killer," Johnson said. Wade had just six points in the games first 37 minutes, then eight more in the next three, setting the tone for a grind-it-out fourth quarter from Miami. "Youve got to do the little things until you get your opportunity," said Wade, who finished with seven rebounds and seven assists. "Thats what I was able to do." The Heat led 79-77 when Brooklyns Marcus Thornton missed a 3-pointer with 6:21 left -- which, had it gone down, would have had the Heat facing a fourth-quarter deficit for the first time in these playoffs. But it missed. And thats when the Heat found separation for the first time all night, at the most critical point. James was in trouble with less than 4 seconds on the shot clock and still found a way to get a bounce pass out to Mario Chalmers in the left corner for a 3-pointer. James passed on the fadeaway, deciding it would be a bad shot, and made the decision to send the ball to Chalmers. "Just get it there," James said he was thinking. He got the pass there, Chalmers made the shot, and after a stop on the ensuing Brooklyn trip, Allen hit from the same spot as Chalmers for an 85-77 lead. "As the game wore on we started picking up the pace," Allen said. "We started to getting how we play basketball." Teletovic kept the Nets afloat. He made his first four 3-pointers, needing less than six minutes to do so after checking in for the first time late in the opening quarter. He had 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc by halftime alone, a boost that Brooklyn definitely needed. And his shots came at big times. Of Teletovics five 3s in the first half, three broke ties. His sixth 3 of the game, late in the third, tied the game at 61. But in the end, Miami was too much. "This series is far from over," Johnson said. NOTES: Trying to save a loose ball in the third quarter, James leaped over a row of people sitting along one sideline, then ran about 10 more rows deep into the stands. ... Mason Plumlee had three first-half fouls for the Nets, matching the entire Heat total. Brooklyn didnt take any free throws until the third quarter. ... Miami went scoreless for the games first 3:32, its longest drought to open a home game since Feb. 26, 2005 -- 443 contests ago. ... Nets F Kevin Garnett, who went scoreless in Game 1, had four points but led everyone with 12 rebounds. Blues Jerseys 2020 . Toronto has lost six of its last eight games but is coming off Thursdays 7-3 victory at Kansas City. Juan Francisco and Colby Rasmus both went deep for the Blue Jays, who are second in the American League with 34 home runs on the season. St.Louis Blues Gear . Yoenis Cespedes proved he can play through a hurting right heel, giving Scott Kazmir and the As a spark with a pair of RBIs that helped spoil the Minnesota Twins home opener with an 8-3 victory on Monday. https://www.cheapblues.com/ . The 23-year-old Poland international is back as first choice at Arsenal after losing his regular spot in the team on occasions over the last three seasons. Blues Jerseys China . -- Jake Paterson made 39 saves as the Saginaw Spirit halted the Guelph Storms seven-game win streak with a 6-3 victory on Sunday in Ontario Hockey League action. Stitched Blues Jerseys .I get texts: Do you know Drake? Have you met Drake? He sits there every night, he hears me cuss out the referees every night, Casey said, laughing.BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil -- Waiting and waiting for an equalizer, the tension showed on the faces of the Belgium players as the second half wore on in the countrys first World Cup match in 12 years. Algeria was on the verge of a major upset in their Group H opener Tuesday, taking the lead through a penalty in the 25th minute. Try as they might, Belgiums attacking players just couldnt break down Algerias defence. In the end, it was the Belgian bench which found the way, with substitutes scoring twice for a 2-1 comeback win. "We tired them down. We just tired them down," Belgium coach Marc Wilmots said. "I told them, Dont worry, we will score." Algerias surprising lead stood for 45 minutes until Marouane Fellainis strong glancing header, with his back to goal, from a Kevin De Bruyne cross in the 70th. Fellaini, who many had considered would start the match, had only come onto the pitch five minutes earlier and was Wilmots final substitution. Dries Mertens right-foot strike beat Algerias goalkeeper in the 80th after Eden Hazard saw him free on the right and set him up for the decider. Mertens, who went on at the start of the second half, sent his shot high in the net outside of Rais Mbolhis reach. "We knew it would be tough, that there would be no space," Wilmots said. "We made one error and we paid for it. The bench made the difference. We showed mental strength and we came back." The error was an obvious one. Belgium left back Jan Vertonghen dragged down Sofiane Feghouli in the area, and the Algerian attacking midfielder got up and converted the resulting penalty. At that point, Algeria was on course to produce another upset of a major team as it did in 1982 when it beat West Germany in its first group match. "We played a very good game against one of the favourites," Feghouli said. "We have to build on this." Thhe Algerians started brightly but faded toward the end against Belgiums unrelenting attack.dddddddddddd. "We saw their strength come through. They showed that Belgium has great players," captain Madjid Bougherra said. "We lacked freshness and energy. The heat cost us." Belgium, widely billed as the favourite in Group H, next plays Russia, while Algeria meets South Korea on June 22. Algeria dominated possession in the opening minutes, surging forward and moving the ball with flair. Belgium eventually settled down and regained control, ending the match with 65 per cent possession. Before Belgiums comeback, the Algeria defence held firm, setting up a bulwark in the final third of the pitch. When Belgium had the ball, Algeria defenders allowed them little room to manoeuvr -- defenders at times doubled up on Hazard, shutting down space for him to operate down the left. "We just missed a big upset, a victory," Algeria coach Vahid Halilhodzic said. "We were so close. "My players have no reason to blush. They may be disappointed, but there is no reason to cry." Defensive midfielder Axel Witsel had Belgiums best two opportunities in the first half -- powerful 25-yard shots parried by the Algeria goalkeeper in the 21st and 34th minutes -- and also snuffed out Algeria threats by protecting the back four and winning numerous aerial duels. Wilmots brought on Mertens for Nacer Chadli after halftime to give Belgium more of an attacking edge. He also took off lone striker Romelu Lukaku, who was left stranded and had a disappointing match, and replaced him with Divock Origi in the 58th. He made his final substitution in the 65th when he brought on Fellanini for Moussa Dembele to give the team more of a physical presence. "We had to be patient, and we had the weapons on the bench to make the difference," Wilmots said. ' ' '
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