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“The Heatles” boost Miami to 3-0 series lead with S&D efforts

When Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh united last summer, their goal was an NBA championship.

“The Heatles” took another step to that goal with a strong collective effort in Miami’s 100-94 Game 3 victory at Philadelphia, giving the Heat a 3-0 lead in the series.

Wade delivered a monster game with 32 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. James tallied 24 points, 15 rebounds and six assists. And Bosh chipped in with 19 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.

“This is what we envisioned,” James told reporters after the game.

The victory pushed the Heat to the brink of becoming the first team to finish out a series. Miami will get its chance at noon Sunday.

“We’re a desperate team right now,” James said. “We want to continue to play that way.”

Their big nights earned them all a place on Thursday’s Studs and Duds.

STUDS

Miami G Dwyane Wade: Went for 32 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two blocked shots in the Heat’s 100-94 Game 3 victory over Philadelphia.

Portland G Wesley Matthews: Tallied 25 points, three assists, two rebounds, two steals and was plus-5 in the Trail Blazers’ 97-92 victory over Dallas.

Miami F LeBron James: Notched 24 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and was plus-8 in the Heat’s victory over the 76ers.

Chicago G Derrick Rose: Scored 23 points, including the go-ahead layup with 17.8 seconds left, to power the Bulls to an 88-84 Game 3 victory over Indiana. Rose also added four steals, three rebounds and two assists and was plus-6.

Chicago F Luol Deng: Went for 21 points, six rebounds and six assists and was a team-best plus-9 in the Bulls’ victory over the Pacers.

Portland F LaMarcus Aldridge: Scored 20 points and grabbed four rebounds in the Trail Blazers’ victory over the Mavericks.

Miami F Chris Bosh: Produced 19 points, six rebounds, three blocked shots and was plus-6 in the Heat’s victory at Philadelphia.

Portland G Brandon Roy: Came off the bench to produce 16 points, four assists and was a team-best plus-7 in the Trail Blazers’ victory over Dallas.

Portland G Andre Miller: Went for 16 points, seven assists and was plus-6 in the Trail Blazers’ triumph over the Mavericks.

Chicago C Joakim Noah: Tallied 11 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots and was plus-6 in the Bulls’ victory at Indiana.

Dallas G Jason Terry: Came off the bench to score 29 points, seven assists and was plus-7 in the Mavericks’ loss at the Trail Blazers.

Dallas F Dirk Nowitzki: Went for 25 points, nine rebounds and two assists in the Mavericks’ loss at Portland.

Philadelphia F Elton Brand: Notched 21 points, 11 rebounds and was plus-1 in the 76ers’ loss to Miami.

Indiana F Danny Granger: Scored 21 points, grabbed four rebounds, produced two assists and snatched two steals in the Pacers’ loss to Chicago.

Philadelphia G Jrue Holiday: Tallied 20 points and eight assists in the 76ers’ loss to Miami.

DUDS

Indiana G Paul George: Went 1-for-9 from the field and was minus-2 in the Pacers’ loss at Chicago.

Philadelphia F Thaddeus Young: Limited to four points on 1-for-8 field-goal shooting, had two turnovers and was minus-7 in the 76ers’ loss to Miami.

Indiana F Tyler Hansbrough: Clanked through a 3-for-12 effort from the field and was a team-worst minus-13 in the Pacers’ loss to the Bulls.

Dallas G Jason Kidd: Went 3-for-9 from the field with five turnovers and was minus-1 in the Mavericks’ loss at Portland.

Indiana’s offense: The Pacers shot 37.9 percent from the field and converted only one 3-pointer in their loss to Chicago.

Memphis’ Battier knows AT&T Center noise

By Mike Monroe
mikemonroe@express-news.net

Uncertain what to expect in the first playoff game of his career, Shane Battier discovered the difference before his first postseason game began.

“My very first memory is running out of the tunnel at ATT Center, having a wall of noise blast me and thinking, ‘So this is what they meant when they were telling us how different things are in the playoffs,’?” said Battier, who arrived with his Memphis Grizzlies on Friday to prepare for the team’s first-round playoff series against the Spurs.

That wall of noise experience was before Game 1 of the Spurs-Grizzlies first-round playoff series in 2004, when Battier was a 25-year-old with three seasons under his NBA belt. It was a brand-new experience for him and for a Grizzlies franchise that had entered the NBA in 1995 as the Vancouver Grizzlies, departing Canada in 2001 after seven seasons produced not a single playoff game.

Now Battier has 38 playoff games on his résumé, 26 of those with the Houston Rockets, the team with which he began the 2010-11 season.

Those playoff games in Houston produced 12 victories and a Game 7 against the eventual-champion Lakers in 2009 in a series that stamped Battier as one of the league’s best perimeter defenders.

A healed Manu Ginobili would give the Spurs a boost, but Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins understands Battier has had success defending him.

The Grizzlies still seek the first playoff victory in franchise history, and at age 32, with nine previous NBA seasons, Battier has become a valued veteran leader despite being reunited with his former team only in February, via trade.

In a short time he has seen enough to know that his young teammates are capable of anything, even in a seemingly daunting matchup against the West’s top-seeded team.

“To be honest, I don’t know how we’re going to react,” he said. “The moment may be too big, and we may not be ready. Or we may be young and dumb enough to think we actually have a shot in this series.

“It can go either way.”

The midseason trade was a shock to Battier’s system, but mitigated by a return to familiar surroundings. The Grizzlies made the move to Memphis not long after making Battier the sixth selection in the 2001 draft, out of Duke. He was one of the team’s most popular players before he was traded to Houston after the 2006 draft for Rudy Gay and Stromile Swift.

“I had nearly five great years in Houston,” he said. “Trades are tough enough in the summer, but it’s really difficult emotionally to get traded in middle of a playoff chase.

“I’m a person that enjoys being comfortable in my surroundings. I don’t like new things. So it took a while to adapt to a new style of play and a new, old city. The saving grace was that I’d spent five great years in Memphis and was able to reach back to some of my old cronies. That was a blessing.

“In terms of basketball, it took me a long time to get comfortable.”

Instant analysis: How the Spurs evened the series

Here’s a look at how the Spurs turned around after a struggling first half to claim a gritty 93-87 victory over Memphis Wednesday night.

Game analysis: After struggling defending Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol in the paint in Game 1, the Spurs did a better collective effort against the Grizzlies’ “Twin Towers,” limiting them to 23 points after they scored 49 points in the playoff opener. The Spurs took a collaborative approach as almost every San Antonio big player rotated against them, with a key finishing effort by Antonio McDyess on Randolph down the stretch.

How the game was won: The Spurs turned on the defense down the stretch, allowing Memphis to score only one basket during a span of nearly four minutes late in the fourthh quarter when their 12-4 run put the game away. And after a struggling team performance from the foul line earlier in the game, George Hill sank six foul shots in the final 5:08, including four in the final 12.3 seconds to ice the victory.

Player of the game: Manu Ginobili could barely lift his right elbow with a bulky brace attached to it, but still provided another memorable performance playing through an injury. His 17 points Wednesday night really don’t do justice to his influence as he also provided seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and blocked a shot for good measure. His shooting numbers weren’t good but the surge of energy he provided to his team helped give them a lift they desparately needed. He finished with a team-best plus-16 in plus/minus.

Player of the game II: After scoring only two points in the first half, Hill gave his team a lift by scoring 14 of his 16 points after the break. He was clutch from the foul line and also hit a couple of crucial 3-pointers that helped him turn around his game after a struggling 1-for-5 start from the field in the first half. Hill also provided five rebounds, four assists and two steals as he gave the Spurs a lift off the bench. The Spurs are a better team when Hill is provided a boost from the bench rather than starting. They missed that lift in Game 1.

Most unsung player: McDyess had a struggling start in the first three quarters as he looked lost at times trying to contain Randolph and Gasol. But the Spurs’ oldest player provided a lift down the stretch as he forced Randolph to miss his final three shots — a 2-foot layup, a 6-foot jumper and a 3-foot layup as the Spurs pulled away to the victory.

Quote of the day: “Manu is Manu. He could be in a body cast and he’s still gonna make plays,” Memphis forward Shane Battier on the return of Ginobili to the Spurs’ lineup

Quote of the day II: ”Memphis, they love to play physical. They’re like the old Utah. They’re going to foul and grab and they’re great at it,” Spurs guard Tony Parker on the Grizzlies’ physical defense.

Quote of the day III: “They clogged the paint up. They came at us from the weak side every time. They said, ‘Well, if you guys are going to beat us, you’re going to beat us with something else,”‘ Gasol, on San Antonio’s defensive strategy in Game 2.

Stat of the game: Memphis shot 39.8 percent from the field Wednesday after shooting 55.2 percent from the field in Game 1. Since 2004, the Spurs have limited playoff opponents to less than 40 percent shooting in 15 games. They are 14-1 in those games.

Stat of the game II: Randolph and Gasol combined to hit 7-for-23 from the field (30.4 percent). They hit 19-for-25 from the field (76 percent) in Game 1.

Curious stat of the game: San Antonio had 19 turnovers in the game, compared to 15 for Memphis. But the Spurs turnovers led to 13 Memphis points, compared to 26 points coming from Memphis’ miscues.

Injuries: Ginobili returned to the lineup despite a sprained right elbow. He was not as effective as normal, but still helped lead San Antonio to the victory.

Turning around the first-game struggles: The Spurs have lost six consecutive Game 1 in the playoffs. They are 3-3 in second games after those early losses.

Regular season vs. playoffs: After hitting 47.5 percent from the field and averaging 103.7 points per game during the regular season, the Spurs are hitting 42.0 percent from the field in the playoffs and averaging 95.5 points per game after two games with the Grizzlies. Memphis is shooting 46.5 percent in the playoffs and averaging 94.0 points in the playoffs, compared to 47.1 percent and 99.9 points in the regular season.

What it means: San Antonio grabbed a crucial victory that evened the series. But the young Grizzlies leave San Antonio with homecourt advantage as they head home for what undoubtedly will be the biggest game in franchise history on Saturday night at the FedExForum with a chance to snatch control of the series.

The numbers say: After splitting the first two games of a playoff series, the Spurs are 12-13 in those series (48.0 percent) in their previous history. But since 2003, they have won seven of their last nine series after starting 1-1.