LeBron and Wade dazzle, as Miami Heat thrash the Charlotte Bobcats 96-82
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade definitely know how to rock.
On Monday night against the Charlotte Bobcats, the two prolific sharp-shooters did exactly that as they both scored over 30 points in the same game for the first time. James pounded a season best 38 points, nine rebounds and five assists. While Wade grabbed
31 points, 11 rebounds and four assists as the Heat sprinted to their 18th win in the last 19 encounters.
After an indifferent start to the season, the duo are now playing with a zip and ferocity that can send chills down the spine of the best defences in the league. Bobcats, under their new Coach Paul Silas, wouldn't have had much of a chance; even at full
strength. With starting forward Gerald Wallace (ankle) and centre Nazr Mohammed (knee) missing from the line-up, they faced an uphill task.
Bobcat's Coach Paul Silas praised Miami's offensive duo after the game by saying, "When Wade is going and LeBron is going, you have to call it a day."
The Bobcats though put up a decent fight upfront as they roared into the first quarter, making 12 of their 19 shots from the field, to put the Heat on the back foot. Wade and James Jones responded for Miami, but the visitors could not match the fiery start
from one of the league’s worst offensive teams. Stephen Jackson led the assault for the Bobcats, scoring seven of their first nine points and finished the frame with a total of twelve.
Charlotte's dominance ensued in the second quarter as James was struggling to find his feet. Wade though was in supreme touch and he started to turn things around midway through the period. With less than eight minutes to go until the break, he made three
consecutive buckets within a span of one minute to pull the Bobcats back. Then with five minutes left, he knocked in one from downtown to jump-start a 15-4 run, which sparked the Heat to a 47-43 lead at half time.
He was soon joined by LeBron, who came to life in the dying minutes of the first half, after a lacklustre start to the game. James scored the last seven points of the spurt before half-time, and then ran riot on the opposition in the third quarter scoring
17 points, as the Bobcats shooting froze in the face of a red-hot Miami offence. After boasting a 63.2 percent shooting rate from the field in the first twelve minutes, the Bobcats fell apart offensively, missing 18 straight shots bridging the second and third
quarters.
The Heat romped into the final quarter with a 78-59 advantage. The Bobcats however, still had some fight left in them, as they rattled a 10-2 spurt early to slash the deficit to 80-69.
LeBron though had other ideas and stepped up to party again. He halted the home team’s surge by first swishing a fall-away 30-footer along the left base-line, and then stole the ball to pull off a signature reverse-jam in his next possession. Wade followed
with a lay-up and James then ripped in two jumpers to completely knock the steam out of the Bobcats. The ordeal finally ended at 96-82 for Charlotte.
Stephen Jackson led with 22 points while D.J. Augustin added 16 for the Bobcats, who shot 38 percent from the field, and perhaps managed to get closer than most teams would have with James and Wade in such vicious mood. Jackson summed up his team’s helplessness
after the match.
"When you are making them take contested shots, and (James) is hitting those, what can you do?" He said. "You have to give props when props are due and they're great, man. Two of the best players in the game and they played like it."
Tags: