The Miami Heat opened their second-round postseason series with a thumping 21 points win over the Brooklyn Nets. LeBron James played a crucial role with his 22 points and five rebounds and there were no signs of rust in Miami's performance in the opening encounter.
Miami will be heading into the second game to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. On the other hand, the Nets will be looking to square the series before going to Brooklyn.
The 'Big Three' Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and James are looking in fine touch and it's not going to be easy for Brooklyn to stop them in the second game. The Nets need to find more energy in the second half as they were swept by the Heat in the third quarter.
"That hurt," Nets Joe Johnson said. "Defensively, that's not us, man. We can't let the other guys around LeBron and Wade have 15, 17 points. To beat this team, you can't allow that."
Offense is also a concern for Brooklyn, as after a strong start they faded away. Paul Pierce was slowed by James and he ended with just eight points, while Kevin Garnett couldn't able to score a single point and had terrible 16 minutes on the court.
After a dreadful showing in the first game, the Nets would be doing some adjustments especially in the offense, but Miami's Wade said they will adapt to the changes made by Brooklyn.
"The biggest thing we're going to have to do is make adjustments to their adjustments, and do it fast," Wade said. "They're going to come out, obviously, having seen some things that worked that maybe they didn't do much and we have to come out and make adjustments to that."
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra is expecting a comeback from Brooklyn and urged his team to remain focused as a loss would change the complexion of the series.
"They're a veteran-enough group, Brooklyn, to know that the final score doesn't mean anything in the playoffs," Spoelstra said. "It's a long series. Throw that one away, you still have another opportunity to do what you came for. We had very good urgency and focus coming into that same game. We cannot have a letdown."
Where to Watch Live
The game is scheduled for a 7:00 pm ET (4:30 am IST, 11:00 pm GMT) start with live coverage on Sony Six and Sony Six HD in India. The game can be watched via live streaming online in the US HERE. The game can be live streamed by international viewers, including India, HERE.
