biba
01-01-2010, 03:46 AM
Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade falters in blowout
Dwyane Wade was held to 16 points and committed seven turnovers as the Heat was dealt its worst loss of the season by the Spurs.
BY MICHAEL WALLACE
[email protected]
SAN ANTONIO -- Thursday night was more than a game for the Spurs. It essentially was a coronation.
Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat just happened to be scheduled as the NBA's invited guest at AT&T Center on New Year's Eve.
The decade for San Antonio ended the same way it began: with the Spurs walking off the court after another impressive victory.
Tim Duncan had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Tony Parker got 15 points and nine assists, and the Spurs capped the decade as the most successful team in the NBA the past 10 years with a 108-78 victory against Miami.
The 30-point defeat was the Heat's worst of the season, eclipsing last month's 118-90 loss to Memphis.
Forced into another out-of-sync performance, Wade missed 12 of 18 shots and committed a season-high seven turnovers in 29 minutes. He finished with 16 points and six assists, but sat in the fourth quarter after the game was well out of reach.
``The Spurs had it, we didn't and they throttled us,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ``It was a combination of everything. We got what we deserved against a very good team. We have to regroup. The rest of the discussions I'll have [about] specifics will be with the team.''
In many ways, the mood after the game was similar to what transpired following the Dec. 13 loss to Memphis, when a series of team meetings were held in the aftermath.
This one also got away from the Heat in a hurry. The Spurs (19-11) scored the first eight points of the second half and outscored the Heat 28-13 in the period to roll to their 10th victory in their past 12 games.
The Spurs led 86-62 at the end of the third quarter, and the fourth quarter was a mixture of music, T-shirt tosses and dancing in the aisles of the sold-out arena. There was reason to celebrate a Spurs team that won a league-best 574 games and three NBA titles since the decade opened.
Meanwhile, it was another evening to forget for the Heat (16-14), which has lost road games on consecutive nights after having won five of six.
The only encouraging performance came from forward Michael Beasley, who led the Heat with 26 points and eight rebounds in 41 minutes. His tied a career high with 12 made field goals and the 21 field-goal attempts were the most of his two-year career.
Beasley also scored a career-high 20 in the first half. But the Heat's offense shifted away from its most effective player for long stretches. At one point, Beasley went 10 minutes between field-goal attempts.
``The team was obviously frustrated,'' said Beasley, who couldn't understand why things changed. ``I honestly don't know. I don't handle the ball. I was just running offense.''
Spoelstra said the ball stopped moving as frequently in Beasley's direction from late in the second quarter to midway through the third. The Spurs' defense had something to do with it, with the Heat held to 44 percent shooting from the field. Miami also missed 3 of 12 threes.
``Beasley got away from us, he had a great night,'' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. ``We probably played him too soft. They ran out of gas.''
http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/story/1405478.html
Dwyane Wade was held to 16 points and committed seven turnovers as the Heat was dealt its worst loss of the season by the Spurs.
BY MICHAEL WALLACE
[email protected]
SAN ANTONIO -- Thursday night was more than a game for the Spurs. It essentially was a coronation.
Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat just happened to be scheduled as the NBA's invited guest at AT&T Center on New Year's Eve.
The decade for San Antonio ended the same way it began: with the Spurs walking off the court after another impressive victory.
Tim Duncan had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Tony Parker got 15 points and nine assists, and the Spurs capped the decade as the most successful team in the NBA the past 10 years with a 108-78 victory against Miami.
The 30-point defeat was the Heat's worst of the season, eclipsing last month's 118-90 loss to Memphis.
Forced into another out-of-sync performance, Wade missed 12 of 18 shots and committed a season-high seven turnovers in 29 minutes. He finished with 16 points and six assists, but sat in the fourth quarter after the game was well out of reach.
``The Spurs had it, we didn't and they throttled us,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ``It was a combination of everything. We got what we deserved against a very good team. We have to regroup. The rest of the discussions I'll have [about] specifics will be with the team.''
In many ways, the mood after the game was similar to what transpired following the Dec. 13 loss to Memphis, when a series of team meetings were held in the aftermath.
This one also got away from the Heat in a hurry. The Spurs (19-11) scored the first eight points of the second half and outscored the Heat 28-13 in the period to roll to their 10th victory in their past 12 games.
The Spurs led 86-62 at the end of the third quarter, and the fourth quarter was a mixture of music, T-shirt tosses and dancing in the aisles of the sold-out arena. There was reason to celebrate a Spurs team that won a league-best 574 games and three NBA titles since the decade opened.
Meanwhile, it was another evening to forget for the Heat (16-14), which has lost road games on consecutive nights after having won five of six.
The only encouraging performance came from forward Michael Beasley, who led the Heat with 26 points and eight rebounds in 41 minutes. His tied a career high with 12 made field goals and the 21 field-goal attempts were the most of his two-year career.
Beasley also scored a career-high 20 in the first half. But the Heat's offense shifted away from its most effective player for long stretches. At one point, Beasley went 10 minutes between field-goal attempts.
``The team was obviously frustrated,'' said Beasley, who couldn't understand why things changed. ``I honestly don't know. I don't handle the ball. I was just running offense.''
Spoelstra said the ball stopped moving as frequently in Beasley's direction from late in the second quarter to midway through the third. The Spurs' defense had something to do with it, with the Heat held to 44 percent shooting from the field. Miami also missed 3 of 12 threes.
``Beasley got away from us, he had a great night,'' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. ``We probably played him too soft. They ran out of gas.''
http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/story/1405478.html