Allen on target as Heat rally to beat Pacers

MIAMI, USA – Miami clamped down in the third quarter and Ray Allen came up big in the fourth on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) as the Heat rallied for a 99-87 NBA playoff victory over Indiana.

Heat superstar LeBron James scored 12 of his 26 points in the third period and veteran shooter Allen shot perfectly from beyond the arc as the two-time defending NBA champions Miami shook off a slow start to turn the tide in the second half.

Miami trailed by as much as 15 points in the first half. They took the lead for the first time with 7:36 remaining in the third quarter, when James capped an 8-0 scoring run with a fastbreak dunk for a 52-51 edge.

James and teammate Dwyane Wade combined for 22 points in the third — matching the entire Pacers’ total — as Miami built a 71-64 advantage.

“We had no choice but to try to re-gather,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, whose team matched the second-largest playoff comeback in franchise history.

The Pacers got within two points in the fourth quarter, but Allen came up big, making all 4 of his three-point attempts in a 13-point effort in the final frame. He finished the game with 16 points.

James added 7 assists, 5 rebounds and four steals. Wade finished with 23 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

Indiana forward Paul George, who suffered a concussion in the fourth quarter of Indiana’s 87-83 game two loss on Tuesday, led the Pacers with 17 points, while Roy Hibbert chipped in 16.

George said the Pacers got complacent.

“You can’t play around with this team,” he said. “I thought we got comfortable at one point.”

The Pacers pounced on the sluggish Heat early, forcing seven turnovers and holding them to 6-of-16 shooting from the field in the opening quarter.

Miami’s James said the Heat were victims of their own “mental breakdowns” on offense in the early going. But he added that they were also too passive.

“We’re an attack team,” he said.

“If we get to our game, so many things happen for us and we’re even able to cover up for some of our mistakes that we make.”

Miami trailed 19-5 with 2:42 left in the first but closed the period with a 9-2 run that narrowed the gap to 21-14 going into the second.

A 10-2 scoring run by the Pacers stretched their lead to 37-22 with 6:22 left in the second, but the Heat had narrowed the gap to 4, 42-38, at halftime.

George Hill scored 5-straight Indiana points to push the lead to 51-44 3 minutes into the third before Wade’s layup sparked the 8-0 Heat run that James capped with a dunk.

After a few lead changes, Allen drained three free throws to give the Heat a 62-61 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.

The Heat did get a scare when James went to the locker room after the third for treatment of cramps, which he later put down to dehydration.

He returned to the game, but it was Allen who starred in the fourth, with 3 of his 4 three-pointers coming in less than 4 minutes after the Pacers had narrowed the deficit to 76-74 with 8:37 remaining.

With the victory, the Heat took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals and will try to stretch their advantage when they host Game 4 on Monday (Tuesday in Manila).

The winners of the series will face either the San Antonio Spurs or the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 2013-2014 NBA title. San Antonio currently leads the Western Conference Finals best-of-7 series, 2-0. – Rappler.com