NBA Live Blog: Thunder-Heat

Oh, boy. That's not what Brooks wanted when he sent Durant out to start the fourth quarter: Durant takes his fifth foul.

Westbrook opens the quarter with a sweet pull-up jumper to cut the lead to nine. And Scott Brooks puts Nick Collison on the floor, hoping for the type of performance he delivered in the second half of Game 1. He immediately makes his presence felt by taking a charge.

LeBron is giving the Heat the leadership it so desperately needed coming into this game with an aggressive 26 points -- only five rebounds and three assists in the process, though. The rest of the Big Three has tacked on 27 of their own. The Thunder, meanwhile, keeps hinting that it might reel the Heat in -- they cut the deficit to nine at one point in the quarter -- but can't put together enough stops to seriously slow down Miami at the other end.

I fully expect Brooks to go with Durant at the start of the fourth quarter. He can't sit on the bench, especially with a double-digit deficit. If you're Brooks, you just hope he stays out of foul trouble. First step: Don't have him defend LeBron.

Check that: Durant's back on the bench now. The Thunder will only be able to count on him in spots for the rest of the game. Will he have another chance to make an impact tonight?

But Durant immediately fouls LeBron and takes his total to four. He's toeing the line now, but Scott Brooks is sticking with him for the time being.

Rare fast-break opportunity for the Thunder there. Durant finishes it off with a layup, and suddenly we have a single-digit deficit.

Perkins goes to the line and sinks two, but that's a guy who has not pulled his weight tonight for the Thunder. In 16 minutes on the floor, he has just two points, three fouls and three turnovers. It's a little surprising to me that Collison hasn't played more for OKC tonight, especially with his outstanding performance in the second half of Game 1.

Oklahoma City is doing some nice things attacking the basket with this smaller lineup. Brooks might stick with this for a while.

If it's a Miami three, it can only be Battier. He has 14 points tonight, mostly on 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc. Jeff Van Gundy tells us that he's shooting 8-of-11 from three during these Finals. And most of those were extremely open, the product of some good work down low by the Heat.

Is it just me, or is Wade moving a lot better than he was in Game 1? Some nice moves to pull out to the left and sink a long jumper to get him up to 15 points on the night. The Thunder hits back right away, and Wade answers by driving back to the rim.

I can only expect that Durant, much like he did in Game 1, will start pursuing his own shot more here in the third quarter. Scott Brooks actually had to implore him to be more aggressive in the second half of Game 1, and Durant took the message to heart. Wonder if there was a similar conversation at halftime tonight. In the first half, Durant was just 3 of 9 for six points.

LeBron and Durant are both up to three fouls early in the third quarter. The Heat's been playing much better defense, but at what cost? They're up to 14 fouls already.

Durant! Third foul! Oh boy! Also, what a shock that Battier took that charge. I've heard they teach that at Duke.

We're back for the second half. Can the Thunder come back and make this one interesting, or are we going to have to find something else to talk about here by the fourth quarter?

Did Magic Johnson -- appearing on ABC's halftime show -- just say Russell Westbrook was the "worst point guard" he's ever seen in the NBA Finals? Zoinks!

Tough first half for the Thunder there. Miami jumped out to a 14-point lead early on, confusing OKC and showing a level of energy that completely abandoned them in the second half of Game 1. Led by James Harden, of all people, the Thunder threatened to rally while Westbrook and Durant sat out with foul trouble, but it never fully materialized. So the Heat goes into the break with a 12-point lead. But Miami did lead by seven at the half in Game 1, and we all remember what happened then.

One little point that's worth mentioning here at halftime: Chris Bosh has been really solid. He's got 10 points and 10 boards already, which obviously has been a huge help for the Heat. Miami needs some inside stability, and Bosh has been key.

The Heat's big three has shown in this half like they never did in Game 1. All three are scoring in double-digits already, even though they are only shooting a combined 14-of-29.

So that prediction about the Thunder leading at halftime? Never mind. Oklahoma City trails by 11 even though James Harden has 17 (!) first-half points. Unreal.

That changed fast. Five quick points -- a layup from LeBron and three from Chalmers -- send the Thunder into this official timeout scratching their heads.

In Game 1, Oklahoma City outscored Miami on fast-break opportunities, 24-4. Tonight? Miami is outscoring Oklahoma City 10-0 -- and that doesn't even include Chalmers's transition 3-pointer just then.

We've just had three blocks in the last 30 seconds! Ibaka, Bosh, and Sefolosha all getting in on the action. Ibaka leads the bunch, though, with four.

So the Big Four -- Durant, Westbrook, James, Wade -- all have two fouls apiece. Equitable, if nothing else.

 

Westbrook, finally. He knocks down a three for his second field goal of the night with his ninth shot. He has six points.

If the NBA gave out an award for NBA Finals First-Half MVP, Shane Battier would win unanimously. That's his third 3-pointer.

Battier settles things down with his third three of the game. He's in phenomenal three-point shooting form this series.

Within 10 seconds of checking in, Westbrook chucked up an off-balanced runner. Miss. Didn't see that coming!

I'm disappointed that Scott Brooks doesn't wear his glasses on the bench.

Durant with a long jumper, Westbrook at the scorer's table ready to check in and the deficit shrinking to eight. My prediction is looking solid. I'm not saying, but I'm just saying.

Bold prediction, Scott. If it happens, I'm also going to need your predictions for the Euro, the U.S. Open and the International Tiddlywinks Championship. But it's looking like it could be on the cards. Both sides trade baskets before Durant drains a pull-up jumper to cut the deficit to eight.

Thunder are heating up with LeBron on the bench. Prediction: Oklahoma City leads at the half.

Harden cuts the lead to 10! Timeout Miami. He now has 14 points and is getting this home crowd fired up. He and Ibaka are a big reason why the Thunder are far from done tonight.

That's true. And besides, they're saving themselves for the second half, right Scott?

LeBron now in foul trouble with two as he takes one trying to strip the ball from Harden.

I don't know, Josh. The Thunder has done pretty well to hang in there without those two guys. And look here: LeBron just picked up foul No. 2! He takes a seat.

Westbrook and Durant both start the quarter on the bench with four fouls between them. The Thunder could be in serious trouble by the time they come back.

Oh, the dreaded in-game interview. These are always, always, always so painful.

Spoelstra is taking a different approach tonight, shuffling fresh bodies in and out of the lineup. The Heat loked worn down in the second half of Game 1, and he's already used more players in the first quarter tonight (nine) than he did in all of Game 1 (eight).

You don't want to know what the Thunder is shooting from the field. Well, maybe you do. It's 25% on 5-of-20. What is happening here.

You know what we haven't seen a lot of in the Finals? Flopping, our old friend from the rest of the postseason. Not sure if that's because the league is clearly miffed over all the flopping (commissioner David Stern said yesterday that he'll take a hard look at it over the summer), or if it's just because the Los Angeles Floppers -- I mean, Clippers -- got knocked out in the second round.

Code Red, Thunder fans: Westbrook just picked up his second foul, too. On a cheapy in the backcourt, too. Not good.

"You love this stage," Spoelstra told his team before the game. "It will be decided by four or five plays." Have those four or five plays already happened? It's possible. Only James Harden has made a compelling argument for the Thunder to stay in this game as he nails his third basket of the game.

Harden is feeling it: 3 for 3 from the field in four minutes off the bench. Crowd is getting back into it. And don't forget: Durant is on the bench with those two fouls.

So LeBron and Wade tonight? Fifteen points on 7-of-11 shooting. They seem OK.

That was Westbrook's first make in seven attempts. That's not exactly what you want from your point guard in the opening 10 minutes of an NBA Finals game. But he's high volume -- high volume shooting, high volume scoring.

Maybe the Thunder's solution will come from James Harden and his beard. They've already combined for five points tonight.

Uh oh, Durant just picked up his second foul. Just when things couldn't get any worse for the Thunder. Unreal shot fake by Dwyane Wade to draw the foul. He's in Full-On Dwyane Wade Mode tonight.

"Guys, they're playing harder than us," Thunder coach Scott Brooks tells his players during the timeout. "There's no other way to explain it." But maybe there is more to it? The Heat is also shooting, moving and passing better, too.

Over/under on when Oklahoma City scores again? I've got third quarter.

Russell Westbrook, who got so hot in the second half of Game 1, has started 0-for-5 from the field tonight. Meanwhile, Battier hits another three to stretch the lead to a whopping 14 in the first quarter.

Shane Battier with another three! He was reflecting yesterday that this is the deepest he's ever been in the postseason. It all feels kind of foreign to him. "I'm usually on a beach with a margarita this time of year," he said. "Am I allowed to say that?"

Great point, Josh. I'm surprised he still isn't waiting. Actually, the people in Oklahoma City are so friendly I'm surprised someone didn't give up their table so he could eat.

After Game 1, LeBron summed things up quite succinctly: "We missed shots and they made shots." The opposite is true tonight: Oklahoma City is missing shots and Miami is making, well, some. Great sign for the Heat that Dwyane Wade is off to such a strong start. That was sort of expected after the beating he's taking in the -- cough, cough -- media over the last two days.

 

Scott, do you really think that Chris Bosh was ever going to get a table in OKC?

An 11-point Heat lead after barely five minutes, and the Thunder is all over the place. Durant already has a foul on Bosh, and Ibaka follows up with a silly loose-ball foul after Bosh misses the free throw. Scott Brooks calls timeout, because, well, just look at the score.

A quick Bosh anecdote: A pal and I were looking for dinner last night here in Oklahoma City, and we found a restaurant. Bosh was there, too. But it was crowded, and even he was waiting for a table. We figured our chances of being seated in a timely manner were slim.

Oklahoma City's playing a little frantically here, off to a 1-of-10 shooting effort from the floor thus far. The players admitted that nerves played a role in their slow start in Game 1, but not sure what's going on here tonight. Just a brickfest. Credit the Miami defense, too.

Well, Wade is trying to be aggressive. Turns out Serge Ibaka is aggressive-r. He comes up with a nasty two-handed block as Wade tries the layup.

So I expect Dwyane Wade to be super aggressive in this game. He had a subpar Game 1, and he was clearly annoyed/upset about it. Call it a hunch.

After missing their first five shots, OKC gets on the board through some guy named Kevin Durant.

Bosh started, by the way. I know everyone was curious.

We start just as we did in Game 1, with the Heat kicking it to Battier outside for the three. LeBron follows up inside the paint. He remembers what it's like in there.

You'll recall that Shane Battier went absolutely bananas in the first half of Game 1. He just hit a 3-pointer here. Also: It looks like the Heat has started the game out in a zone. Very interesting strategy.

Did I just catch a shot of Scott Brooks wearing hipster glasses, too? Oh my. It's a phenomenon. (And we've hit our quota.)

And they're off. After the blue "One Thunder" T-shirts for Game 1, the home fans are in white tonight, and the message is "Team is Family."

I see you, Jeff Van Gundy! With those super cool glasses! Did I mention Ben Cohen and I wrote a story about glasses today? Read it here. Tell your friends.

Wait, is Bosh starting? Did anyone catch that?

Big pregame build-up here. They just flashed the following on the Jumbotron: "In Oklahoma ... our collars are BLUE!" Interesting.

That's a nice anthem there, multi-platinum country artist Sara Evans. Although it did go on a bit at the end there, stretching it to 2 minutes 4 seconds, just one second longer than the Game 1 anthem. Thought you, readers, might like to know.

Josh, did he actually capitalize "Road Warriors" in his speech? Did he write on a white clipboard like Spoelstra?

I award points to singers based on how quickly (and respectfully, of course) they sing the National Anthem. On that basis alone, Sara Evans = fail.

 

Meanwhile, ABC's cameras capture LeBron James in the Heat locker room telling his teammates, "We need this one. Road Warriors mentality." And he knows just how tough it's going to be: The Thunder is undefeated at home during these playoffs.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is scrambling furiously on his clipboard minutes before the game. He has the look of a man drawing up a brilliant play to score the first points of the game, demoralize the Thunder and so revolutionize basketball that OKC simply gives up. Wait, no. In big, blue block capitals, he's written the word "Conquer." Guess that's the game plan then.

Greetings from Chesapeake Energy Arena, where the most ridiculously boring subplot in the history of the NBA Finals continues unabated: Yes, we're referring of course to the ongoing saga of whether Heat coach Erik Spoelstra will start Chris Bosh. Zzz! After Spoelstra kept us on pins and needles before Game 1, he opted to bring Bosh off the bench. (He scored 10 points in 33 mostly unremarkable minutes.) During his pregame media availability a few minutes ago, Spoelstra once again left us guessing. To sum up: We still don't know whether Bosh will start, and we still don't know why this is such a big deal. Whether he comes off the bench or not, Bosh will play big minutes. The more important question is: Will he play better than he did in Game 1?

In the two days since Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the main topic of conversation has been eyeglasses: red ones, nerdy ones, fake ones, and expensive ones. And why not? It was the bespectacled players who grabbed the headlines in the Oklahoma City Thunder???s 105-94 victory Tuesday night. For the right reasons (see: Durant, Kevin and Westbrook, Russell) and the wrong reasons (we???re looking at you, Dwyane Wade).

The sensational Durant, who had 36 points on just 20 shots, led a Thunder revival in the second half that made you wonder how his team had ever trailed the Miami Heat by 13 points during that game. The endlessly energetic Westbrook, meanwhile, added 27 points and 11 assists of his own as OKC brought down the Cheseapeake Energy Arena.

It was enough to make the Heat look downright slow and overshadow 30 points from LeBron James, who was often guarded out of relevance by Thabo Sefolosha. Much of the blame has also come to rest on Wade???s shoulders -- the Heat???s legion of critics were all too excited to mention that his 19 points came from 7-of-19 shooting -- but Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem did not cover themselves in glory either, especially not with their defensive play. Coach Erik Spoelstra knows that he will need to change something if the Heat are to avoid going back to Miami down 2-0. It would be the eighth time since 2000 that a team found itself in that hole, and in six of those occasions, the trailing team has lost. The only exception, Miami fans will remember, is the 2006 Heat.

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