NBA Finals Game-3: Dwyane Wade leads Miami Heat to a 88-86 victory over the Dallas Mavericks
Miami Heats’ prolific shooting guard, Dwyane Wade continued his excellent run in the NBA Finals and erupted with a team-high 29 points and 11 rebounds to propel the men from the South Beach to an 88-86 win over the Dallas Mavericks. With this win, Miami restored their home court advantage and now lead the best-of-seven series 2-1.
Forwards Chris Bosh added 18 points on the night, including a 16-foot go-ahead jumper from the baseline with 39.6 seconds remaining in the game. LeBron James finished with 17 points and nine assists and two steals. However, King James had four turnovers, including a pair during the finals stanza that provided the Maverick with an opportunity to get back into the game. Mario Chalmers found his rhythm and came off the bench with 12 points in the victory
Power forward Dirk Nowitzki once again led the Mavericks with a game-high 34 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 11-for-21 from the field. However, the German sharpshooter missed a fade away jumper at the buzzer that could send the game into overtime. Jason Terry came off the bench with 15 points while Shawn Marion had 10 points. Jason Kidd lived up to his role of a facilitator and finished with a game-high 10 assists.
The Mavericks got off to an impressive start and carried a 14-9 lead early in the first quarter. Miami however managed to tie the game at 18-18 with 04:03 to go in the first and then scored four straight to take a 22-18 lead. Dallas rallied back though and Barea’s free throw’s tied the game for the second time in the opening quarter at 22. With 35 seconds to go in the first, Miami surged, and scored seven unanswered points to carry a 29-22 advantage into the second.
The Heat maintained their hold on the Mavs throughout the second quarter. Wade scored 19 of his points in the first half as Miami held a 47-42 lead at halftime.
The Mavs however shelved a 5-point deficit and took a 59-58 lead midway through the third. The Heat, however quickly regained their lead and took a 67-64 lead into the fourth.
Dallas blazed out in the fourth quarter and gave the Heat defence a run for their money. When they tied the game at 86 with 01:40 remaining in the game, it seemed that the Mavs will pull off a late win again. Bosh however wasn’t having any of it and hit a jump shot to make it 88-86 for the Heat with 39 seconds remaining on the clock. Nowitzki had a chance to tie the game in the closing seconds of the game, but the Heat held on to clinch the thriller.
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