Miami Heat fans exit American Airlines Arena with 4 minutes to go in Game 3.
With the momentum on their side and a commanding Game 2 win in San Antonio, the Miami Heat stepped into American Airlines Arena undefeated at home in the playoffs, dating back to last year in Game 1 of the NBA Finals to —you guessed it— the Spurs.
Jumping to an early lead on the road, San Antonio looked to set the pace of the game from the jump, getting into rhythm and letting the Heat trail behind them. It got so ugly at one point that the Spurs had a 25 point lead, quieting the crowd in Miami with immaculate shooting. They missed a total of two shots from the beginning of the game up until the middle of the second quarter and shot 75% from the field in the first half. Everything was sinking for them.
By halftime, Miami cut the lead down to 21, but San Antonio still managed to score a whopping 71 points in the first two quarters. It was raining jumpshots.
Or maybe it was the DJ Khaled curse.
Things didn’t get better in the 3rd quarter for Miami, until they did. They went on a run to cut the lead all the way down to 7 points and all hope for a comeback win was restored. It wouldn’t be the first time the Heat pulled it off. They’re known to go on big runs, especially when the Spurs were on a cold-streak.
But the Spurs always found a way to get things done, in part because Kawhi Leonard had the best playoff game of his career, scoring 29 in the win. Four other San Antonio players were in double digits, including Manu Ginobli, Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Danny Green. Parker and Green had 15 points each, while Duncan scored 14 of his own.
On the other side of the ball, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade combined for 44 points, each scoring 22 points. Rashard Lewis contributed with 14 points and Ray Allen had 11 off the bench.
Game 4 of the NBA Finals in Miami goes down on Thursday live on ABC.