Wade’s stock still on the rise
WASHINGTON – The preliminary stuff is over in the Miami Heat’s playoff run.
Eddie Jones made a 3-pointer from the right wing with 14.9 seconds remaining Saturday night, thwarting a late Washington Wizards rally and helping the Heat to a 99-95 victory that wrapped up the Eastern Conference semifinal series in four games.
Miami swept two teams it also swept in the regular season, completing the job with Dwyane Wade solidifying his case as a phenomenon-on-the-rise, with Jones hitting the winning shot, and with Shaquille O’Neal sitting on the bench in a dapper dark gray suit.
Jones’ basket gave Miami a 97-95 lead and ended a streak of 16 straight misses for the Heat, who blew an 11-point lead over the final 6 minutes.
Washington’s Larry Hughes attempted to tie the game with a drive to the basket, but Alonzo Mourning blocked the shot with 8.3 seconds remaining. Wade then made two free throws for the final points.
Wade scored 22 of his career playoff-high 42 points in a dazzling third quarter in which he went 7 for 7 from the field and 8 for 8 from the free-throw line. He broke franchise records for points in a playoff quarter and a playoff game and scored 31, 31 and 42 in the last three games of the series.
The Wizards couldn’t stop Wade, whether he worked himself open for a jumper or grabbed an offensive rebound and went back up for a dunk. He finished 13 for 22 from the field and 16 for 17 from the line.
“It was just about taking what the defense gave me,” Wade said. “I had confidence in my pull-up, and I was taking that. Then the defense started getting confused, and I was able to get to the lane and make the basket down low.”
O’Neal missed his second straight game with a deep thigh bruise that has hobbled him for several weeks. The sweep will give him a minimum of eight days to recover, with the conference finals against Detroit or Indiana not scheduled to start until May 23, at the earliest.
“It means we get a lot of rest,” Wade said. “We’re just going to try to go get healthy. This team is on a mission. Whoever our next opponent is in the next round is going to be tough.”
A healthy O’Neal wasn’t necessary against New Jersey in the first round or Washington in the second. The Heat went 15-0 against the two teams and are the first team in NBA history to sweep the same two teams in the playoffs that it swept during the regular season. Miami has also won 12 straight against Washington over two seasons.
Damon Jones added 19 points for the Heat, including 12 points in the pivotal third quarter when he made all four of his 3-point attempts. Miami outscored Washington 40-25 in the third, opening an 11-point lead that became 13 when Eddie Jones opened the fourth with a basket.
All hope for the Wizards appeared to end when Gilbert Arenas fouled out with 6:04 remaining and his team trailing by 10, but Juan Dixon made a pair of 3-pointers and Antawn Jamison hit a 3 that put the Wizards ahead 95-94 with 1:15 to play.
Arenas scored 25 points for the Wizards before fouling out for the second time this season. Arenas, who usually throws his jersey into the crowd after each game, did so immediately after getting his sixth foul and was called for a technical.
Brendan Haywood added 18 points and 15 rebounds for the Wizards. Dixon and Hughes scored 15 apiece.
The Heat were outscored 20-8 and outrebounded 17-13 at the center position. Mourning, effective in Game 3 in his first playoff start in four years, was in constant foul trouble and contributed little until his block at the end.
Michael Doleac was more effective hitting medium-range jumpers than he was trying to put back offensive rebounds, and he also had three fouls in the first half.
With both teams and all 20,000 spectators aware that no NBA team has recovered from a 3-0 deficit, the MCI Center had a more relaxed atmosphere until the Wizards’ late comeback.
The pressure was off, and the teams played accordingly, with a better flow and fewer of the tension-induced turnovers seen in the first three games.
Arenas was the exception. The Wizards point guard was sometimes indecisive as he struggled with his shot, making just 3 of 11 field goals in the first half. He finished 5 for 17.