The Miami Heat made up for their sluggish Game 1 loss to the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Playoffs after winning Game 3 to take back home court advantage and a 2-1 lead in the series as MVP LeBron James gave an award worthy performance on the stat sheet and on the court, as he was mocked after a flop after contact with Nazr Mohammed.
James scored 25 points in the game to help lead the Heat and although he was mocked after a shove to the court that got Mohammed ejected from the game, the MVP took in in stride and led his team to a victory. He had 12 points in the fourth quarter and the Bulls couldn't do anything to stop him from scoring towards the end, while Norris Cole added a solid 18 points and Chris Bosh nearly had a 20-20 game with 20 points and 19 rebounds. The 104-94 Game 3 victory came a few days after the teams 115-78 blowout of the Bulls on Wednesday and showed that the Heat are regaining their championship form at the right time.
The Bulls have been playing the entire NBA playoffs with a depleted roster without Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich, but a return by Rose in Game 4 would change everything for the Bulls. Joakim Noah has basically been playing on one foot and the injuries have forced big minutes for Nate Robinson and Jimmy Butler, who have played well but haven't been able to match the production of James. The bench scoring has been key for the Heat as well, as the team outscored Chicago's 36-8 and hit threes at the end of the game to keep the lead intact.
The Bulls got 21 points from Carlos Boozer and 15 points and 11 rebounds from Noah, but 17 points from Robinson and Butler were not enough. The Bulls came close to taking the lead at the end after being down 85-83, but after a Cole basket and a James three pointer, the lead started getting out of hand and with two minutes left the Bulls found themselves down eight points. Miami had their 27 game winning streak stopped by the Bulls in Chicago and they now have erased that from memory after winning for the first time there since that streak. The game was a physical one, but the Heat were able to gind out the Bulls at the end for the win and the 2-1 series lead.
The Heat now have a 2-1 series lead on the Bulls before Game 4 on Sunday in Chicago, while the San Antonio Spurs took back home court advantage with their Game 3 win to take a 2-1 lead over the Golden State Warriors, with Game 4 also on Sunday. The Thunder and Grizzlies are tied 1-1 with Game 2 Saturday, while the Knicks and Pacers are in the same situation.
