Heat 104, Cavaliers 95 (Beyond the Box Score)

It's tough to doubt the Heat after this one.

Miami and Cleveland have played 96 minutes of basketball over three days, and the team that was in control for 92 of those minutes wasn't the one with one of the league's best records and the odds-on favorite to win MVP honors. LeBron James, who turned 24 on Tuesday, is now 0-3 on his birthday.

But unlike on Sunday, the Heat was able to finish off the Cavaliers this time. Fueled by a roster-wide effort that included leadership and solid decision-making from Dwyane Wade, clutch shooting from Daequan Cook and Mario Chalmers, key defense from Shawn Marion and all-out grit and hustle from Udonis Haslem, the Heat held off the Cavs 104-95 on Tuesday at AmericanAirlines Arena.

LeBron did his thing. But it wasn't enough. The Heat is 17-13 through 30 games, and has wins against the Spurs, Lakers, Suns and Cavs among others.

Player of the Game: Mario Chalmers - Dwyane Wade knew the Cavs would force the ball out of his hands. So he told Chalmers before the game to "be ready to shoot." Like a wise rookie, Chalmers listened and executed. Chalmers made a career-high six three-pointers (tying a Heat rookie record) and finished 7 of 9 overall from the field for 21 points to go with eight assists and three steals without a turnovers. He also hounded Heat Nemesis Mo Williams into a 2-of-8 night.

Surprise, Surprise: Shawn Marion - Made LeBron James work for every point of that 35.5 points per game average in two matchups against the Heat. Seriously. And unlike Sunday, Marion even had enough left to contribute a bit on the offensive end. Marion's dunks and putbacks were key down the stretch for the Heat. He had 14 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and a block in 37 minutes. For those who suggest he should be traded, this is why he's valuable to the Heat.

Tough Night: Michael Beasley - Was only 1 of 5 from the field and played only 13 minutes. Never found a rhythm or his role in the game. Still he finished with eight points and five rebounds. In a season of on-again-off-again nights, this was an off night for Beasley.

Shut 'em Down: Mo Williams - He's been a Heat killer since his days in Milwaukee. But Mo didn't have his mojo Tuesday against Mario Chalmers. Williams missed six of his eight shots and had two turnovers. On Sunday it was Williams who closed the door on the Heat with 20 points, including a big fourth quarter in which he made clutch shot after clutch shot.

Stat of the Night: 61.1 - That's the percentage the Heat shot from three-point range, which represented a season high. Miami was 11 of 18 from beyond the arc.

That says it all: "After the way we played in Cleveland, we felt it was a shame that, down the stretch, we didn't make the proper decisions. Tonight, when it got down to that point, we just wanted to focus on closing it out." - Heat forward Udonis Haslem, on the Heat's response Tuesday after blowing a nine-point lead in Sunday's loss at Cleveland.

Next Up: Friday - Heat at Orlando Magic, 7 p.m. Amway Arena

Comments

[ebag]

big win for the heat. playoff caliber win.

big ups to spo for getting a team this young to win big games against a championship contender.

big ups to cook and chalmers for helping wade on offense. he needs it. big up to wade for 12 assists.

but i'm still not sold on shawn marion getting seventeen million bucks to limit lebron to seventy points in two games

[Greg]

yeah maybe you could say Marion had a good game, if he didn't throw the ball away several times, miss at least 4-5 shots from within 2 feet. And no, his defense wasn't great either, i'd hardly say holding lebron to 38 points was a great defensive performance.

[gfnova]

Banks played well last night, the first time I can say that he actually deserved to be in the lineup over Quinn..
Finally, the Heat have shooters(Chalmers and Cook) to help Wade on his off nights!
Cook could be the story of the year. He is playing at a high level, with energetic on the ball defense and his smooth jump shot.

[heatstroked]

"Banks played well last night ..."
---

HUH? Cleveland made their biggest run with Banks on the floor. An assist + a T/O in a handful of minutes = 4.5 T/Os over 36. That might be good for Banks but it would've killed the Heat. Thank gawd he wasn't on the floor when it mattered. If Riley's showing him around for a trade, I hope it comes down soon.

[pugtv]

Beasley's outside jumper amazes me. They just go in consistently. In this game however, Beasley shot 1/5. The reason is he was trying something new. Beasley started trying to go aggressively inside instead of shooting outside jumpers.

Spoelstra needs to give him time on the court to develop his inside game. Playing against Varejao and Ben Wallace would have been a good learning experience for him.

[marc]

great game. im already excited for next year when the rookies develope in the offseason. chalmers i think is already the best pg besides of course tim hard. to ever play for the heat. fearless and confident. i still say marion is not the answer, package him and quinn for a solid big man. shouldve went for okafor in the offseason.

[gfnova]

if Marion will take a substantial paycut next year, we should keep him. He does certain things really well, like d up, rebound, and run. too bad he cant shoot. When we are in need of points, we put Dequan in the game. I like how we can platoon these 2 guys at the 3 spot