MIAMI - The two-time defending champions Miami Heat shook off a sluggish start to beat the stubborn Charlotte Bobcats in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinals Sunday afternoon at the American Airlines Arena.
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade scored 27 and 23 points respectively, and the Heat registered a 99-88 victory. The other piece of Miami's Big 3 -- Chris Bosh -- added a quiet 13 points.
"We were flat to start but I think our guys were just anxious to get started to finally start the postseason games. We started to get more into the groove at the end of the first quarter," Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters during his post game press conference.
Down 1-0 in this best-of-7 series, the odds are stacked heavily against the young Charlotte Bobcats. Since the Big 3 came together in 2010, the Bobcats have not beaten the Heat in 16 tries.
Up by 9 early, Bobcats worked hard to notch their first postseason win but Miami's 30-point second quarter plus a 20-8 fourth quarter spurt put the Bobcats away for good. The Heat also drilled 11 of 23 threes.
James Jones was a pleasant surprise for the Heat, coming off the bench to add 12 markers. Jones had played sparingly in the regular season but Spoelstra moved him up in the rotation ahead of the struggling Shane Battier.
Kemba Walker had 20 points and 6 dimes to lead Charlotte's losing cause. Big man Al Jefferson finished with a strong double-double, 18 and 10 boards, but he suffered a strained plantar fascia injury in the first quarter and it hobbled him the rest of the way.
The Bobcats shoot for the equalizer when Game 2 resumes Wednesday night (Thursday AM in Manila) at the American Airlines Arena. (HL)
Photo: LeBron James defies Charlotte's Bismack Biyombo in the Heat's 99-88 victory over the Bobcats Sunday afternoon at the American Airlines Arena.
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