Heat Return Home For Game 5 Looking To Regain Series Lead
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MIAMI (CBSMiami/SportsDirect) – The first round playoff series between the Miami Heat and the Charlotte Hornets has been a tale of two cities so far.
The Heat have been two different teams in the playoffs depending on the venue and will hope for a return to form on offense when the series shifts back to Miami for Game 5 on Wednesday.
The sixth-seeded Hornets took Games 3 and 4 at home to even the series and hope the defensive improvements the team made can carry over to Game 5.
The Heat set a franchise postseason scoring record with 123 points in Game 1 and put up 72 in the first half of a 115-103 Game 2 win before failing to crack 90 points in either of the two road games.
"The biggest thing I'd change is nothing," Miami center Hassan Whiteside, who was careful not to directly criticize the referees, told reporters. "We just missed some shots. They've got to come to South Beach, and we've been playing well all year at home."
The Hornets attacked the Heat defense through the paint with guards Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lin in the 89-85 Game 4 win, and the two combined for 55 points.
Walker scored 11 straight Charlotte points in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter to help his team pull away.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT, FSN Sun (Miami)
ABOUT THE HORNETS: Walker slumped to 17 points on 4-of-19 shooting in Game 3 but found his groove again in Game 4, especially late.
"Time and time again in these situations, my team, coaching staff, everybody tells me it's time to win." Walker told reporters. "Coach put me in position to make plays. I just want to be as aggressive as possible. I was able to get my shot off, and I just wanted to be confident."
Lin added the highlight of the game when he banked in a 3-pointer and shrugged on the way down the court.
ABOUT THE HEAT: Miami was whistled for 26 personal fouls in Game 4, with starting guards Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic combining for nine.
"We've had some key guys in foul trouble," Heat guard Joe Johnson, who did not commit a foul, told reporters. "For the most part, we were just trying to hold the fort until we can get those guys back out there. But it's tough. We just kept fouling and kept putting them on the line. We have to make the game easier. The game has been so tough for us, especially in Charlotte. We have to make an adjustment."
Wade averaged 22 points on 19-of-38 in the first two games at home before slumping to 14.5 on 11-of-31 in Charlotte.
BUZZER BEATERS
- Hornets G Nicolas Batum (foot) missed the last two games and is questionable for Game 5.
- Whiteside (eight points, seven rebounds) failed to record a double-double on Monday for the first time in the series.
- Charlotte F Marvin Williams scored 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting in Game 3 but totaled two points on 1-of-22 in the other three games.
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