With their season on the line, the Miami Heat have pushed the NBA Finals to a Game 7 after a wild 103-100 overtime victory over the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday night.
LeBron James had to dig deep in order to ward off another offseason of disappointment, finishing with a triple-double of 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the Heat, doing most of the work without his right-hand man, Dwyane Wade.
Wade finished with a pedestrian 14 points on 6-of-15 from the field with four rebounds, four assists and three turnovers. Already dealing with ailing knees, he retweaked his sore left knee in an early first-quarter collision with Manu Ginobili.
During the fourth quarter, James led a 22-9 run with Wade on the bench for majority of the time. However, the Heat still needed a Ray Allen 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds left in order to force an overtime.
"Just no quit in this team," Wade said in a happy locker room. "The game of basketball is a funny thing. I wish we could say how and why [we won]. That's why we love this game. It's unpredictable. That's why the only thing you can do when things look dim and dark is just keep going."
James added:
"It was by far the best game I've ever been a part of," James said of Game 6. "The ups and downs, the roller coaster, the emotions, good and bad throughout the whole game. To be a part of something like this is something you would never be able to recreate once you're done playing the game. And I'm blessed to be a part of something like this.
"And I'm happy about the way we dug down and was able to get a win. It didn't look like we could muster up at some point in the game."
Game 7 will be played Thursday (9 p.m. ET, ABC).
Related Articles:
Los Angeles Lakers Rumors: Phil Jackson Compares Shaquille O'Neal To Wilt Chamberlain, Who's The Franchise's More Dominant Big Man?
NBA News And Rumors: Doc Rivers Unsure About A Return To Celtics After Clippers Walk Away From Negotiations
NBA Standings 2013: Miami's LeBron James Continues To Struggle With His Shot, Must Regain His Touch In Game 6 Against San Antonio
NBA Finals Schedule 2013: TV Time And Game Preview For Game 6 Between The San Antonio Spurs And Miami Heat