The Heat were a little sluggish in the first half of the game, trailing the Pacers by six points heading into the halftime break. They started fighting back in the third quarter, and they kept it up in the fourth quarter, led by the reining MVP, LeBron James.
As expected, LeBron put on a monstrous performance in Game 1, putting up 32 points and 15 rebounds. Dwyane Wade - who historically puts up solid numbers against Indiana - struggled with his jumper against the Pacers, shooting 35 percent from the field. Wade made up for his poor shooting at the free throw line though, knocking down 13 of his 14 attempts. He finished will 29 points and 4 assists.
"We took it upon ourselves, me and D-Wade, we had to put the team on our back," James told reporters. "I made a conscious effort in the second half to rebound the ball even more."
Chris Bosh was having a lot success against the Pacers, but an abdominal injury forced him out of the game towards the end of the first half. He left with 13 points and 5 rebounds.
"We have some time now. We don't know what Chris' status is," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters after the game. "We won't know until we get an MRI, move on from there."
Miami's role players didn't particularly play well in Game 1, but they did get a much needed boost from Joel Anthony, who finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds (going 4-4 from the field).
The Heat's offense struggled a bit on Sunday, but they played a lot better on the defensive end, containing Indiana's superstars. They'll have to make a few adjustments on the offensive end, but they should be able to duplicate their success - with or without Bosh - when the two teams meet on May 15 for Game 2.
David is a Miami Heat fan that has followed the team for 16 years. Follow him on twitter @davidkingwriter and check out his blog.
Sources:
Ira Winderman, "James powers Heat past Pacers 95-86, with Bosh lost to injury"
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