Miami Heat 31 vs. Oklahoma City Thunder 26: First Quarter Breakdown Game 5 - NBA Finals 2012
In the first quarter of Game 5, Miami Heat looking to win their 4th game in a row and with it the NBA Finals, held a 31-26 lead over Oklahoma City Thunder, mainly due to their impressive long range shooting.
LeBron James looking to win the all elusive NBA Championship led the Miami scoring in the first period with 7 points and 2 assists. Dwyane Wade managed to get 4 points while Chris Bosh dominated the post with 6 points.
Miami were just spectacular from the long range. They were led by Mike Miller, who shot two triples on as many attempts to muster up 6 points in the frame. Shane Battier also managed to knock down a triple while Norris Cole came
off the bench to knock down Miami`s fourth three pointer in the stanza.
Mario Chalmers also had a significant impact in the period and even though he only 2 points to his name but was responsible for dishing out 5 assists. The only struggle for Heat in the first quarter came from the 11:24 mark till
the 8:29 mark, during which they went scoreless and missed all 4 field goal attempts. However, the poor shooting of the Thunder and impressive defensive hustle eventually bailed them out.
Oklahoma City also got off to another rusty start, missing their first 3 attempts at the basket. Most importantly, they could only muster up 4 points during the time Miami faced a scoring drought.
Kevin Durant tried his best to lead the Thunder with 9 points but another slow start to the game was a significant factor for them trailing early in the game. Russell Westbrook managed to get 8 points, mostly on free throws, while
James Harden and Nick Collison came off the bench to contribute 2 points each.
The lack of productivity in the paint was a significant factor for OKC trailing after the first period. Kendrick Perkins only managed to get 2 points while Serge Ibaka chipped in with 3.
Miami started the game with an added intensity and till the first twelve minutes, they seemed to be the team in charge.
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