The Brooklyn Nets marched into Miami Tuesday night looking to complete a 4 game sweep of the Miami Heat. The Nets faced the Heat three times this season winning all three games.Brooklyn remains the only team the Heat have not beat this season. The Heat would rest Dwayne Wade, Udonis Haslem, and Greg Oden for the game and Brooklyn would hold out Andray Blatche and Kevin Garnett as both teams are trying their best to win games while keeping players healthy for the playoffs. The Heat remained half a game over Indiana, who have been in turmoil, for first place and Brooklyn remains in fifth, two games behind the 3rd and 4th place Raptors and Bulls.
The Nets led by as many as 13 in the second quarter but quickly allowed the Heat to strike back. The game was back and forth late into the 4th, but Brooklyn saw a huge boost from the bench as Mirza Teletovic and Marcus Thornton both scored in double digits. Thornton was 4-5 from behind the arc and hit a big three from the corner late in the game followed by a Joe Johnson buzzer beating floater that put Brooklyn up four. James drove to the basket on the next possession for a three point play bring the Heat within one. The Nets were up 88-87 with a chance to possibly seal the game when Johnson missed a 3 bad off the backboard.
The last play would come down to LeBron who to it to the rim looking for a slam dunk to put the Heat up, but Mason Plumlee stepped up and blocked it allowing the Nets to hold off the Heat and become the only team unbeaten by the Heat this year. The game was played in The King’s Court Tuesday night and King James wasn’t happy with the outcome of the final play.
Lebron left the court angry and confused why a foul wasn’t called, but like Plumlee mention after the game, “They (refs) didn’t see it that way and we won.”
When asked if Lebron had anything to say he responded by saying “It was a foul…if he doesn’t get a hand on me, that ball goes down.” Lebron then was asked if Brooklyn was possibly their biggest threat to them in the playoffs, Lebron said “Not even. Next question.”
Lebron may not see the Nets as a threat, but they have been playing the best basketball in the East since January and do seem to have Miami’s number.
PuresportsNY: Bobby O’Hara