NEW YORK -- Game 4 must have set some kind of record for news and drama in a game that doesn't matter.
The Heat is still going to win the series but the Knicks delayed the inevitable with its first postseason victory in 11 years. Carmelo finally lived up to his talent level with a 41-point performance. Amare Stoudemire saved a little face after his fire extinguisher incident by scoring 20 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
IT WAS OVER WHEN ...
Dwyane Wade lost his dribble momentarily on the final play of the game. It was a small mistake but one big enough to close off his driving lane and force him into taking a bad shot.
WHERE WAS LEBRON?
LeBron was amazing in the final two minutes but vanished into the corner of the court on the game's final play. Afterwards, LeBron said he "would love to have the ball" on the final play but "we all win games together and we all lose games together."
BATTIER TORCHED
The Heat signed Battier for his perimeter defense but he was no match for Carmelo, who had 23 points in the second half.
AGAIN, WHERE WAS LEBRON?
When asked why LeBron didn't cover Carmelo in the fourth quarter, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, "We had an opportunity to win the game no matter who was guarding Anthony."
BARON OUT
Knicks guard Baron Davis dislocated his right kneecap during the second half. He's done for the series. The Knicks are down to two point guards: Mike Bibby and Toney Douglas.
SPEAKING OF BIBBY
I'm sure Heat fans had some colorful words and phrases for their television screens when Bibby drilled that three-pointer
BENCH WOES
Once again, the Heat's bench didn't provide much (nine points). That's a killer when Mario Chalmers has one of his bad games. He scored six points, going 2 of 10 from the field.
PLAY OF THE GAME
Got to give it to LeBron for that spin move on Tyson Chandler, the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year.
NEXT GAME
7 p.m. Wednesday, AmericanAirlines Arena (TNT)
INDIVIDUAL GAME TICKETS
Go on sale for Game 5 at 2 p.m. on Monday. Check Heat.com, Ticketmaster.com or call 1-800-4NBA-TIX.
Ok, one loss... Let's get this over in five....
Posted by: black the trucker | Monday, May 07, 2012 at 12:24 AM
....there goes that ridiculous saying that - 'at the end of the game, the refs swallow their whistles, and you really got to foul someone to get the call'. Let's see if Melo is on the IR after taking that beating from Battier in the closing minutes, shooting that 3. Really? Mr. Official - WTF?? Bailing out a shooter who didn't attack the rim, dribble many seconds off the clock, and then chucked up a 3?
The Heat made mistakes also, re: Bosh TO. So the Knicks are 1-13 in their last 14 playoff games, at least the Bulls are 1-7 in their last 8 playoff games...I'll bet it's because Thibs doesn't have a set bench rotation, no, it's because he doesn't adjust his rotation based on the game situation - I always get those confused?
3 down - 13 to go
Posted by: greg gembe | Monday, May 07, 2012 at 08:14 AM