Heat Finish Off Knicks In 5, Advance To Face Pacers

Miami closed out on New York’s shooters all series long, giving them no space to operate and no choice but to fire up desperate shots. In turn, it gave everyone a reminder of why this team can be so dangerous come playoff time. No team in the league has the length and speed that Miami brings on defense. They may be weak on the inside, but they pressure teams so well that half the time it doesn’t even matter. And nobody personifies this better than the NBA MVP.

That one went in, but most of the others didn’t.

There’s plenty of reason to be down on the Knicks. Reason No. 1 with a bullet: Amar’e Stoudemire, the power forward due another $65 million over the next three years. Stoudemire’s performance and importance began to backslide the second Carmelo arrived in 2011. With Chandler’s arrival, Mike D’Antoni’s dismissal and a new Knicks identity being born this season, he’s become a massive sore thumb for the club. Simply put, he does not nor will ever “fit” on a defense-first club. He’s bad at defense, his injuries (past and present) make it impossible to do his job properly and he seems unable to fit his offense around that of Anthony.

What’s good is that progress was made this year. The 2011-12 Knicks were better than the 2010-11 Knicks. The end result -- a first-round ejection -- was the same, and questions about the future remain. But a dozen teams would be pigs in slop if they improved as much as the Knicks did this season. New York went from 15th in scoring margin to eighth, from flirting with .500 to solidly above it. That’s progress! Given the number of injuries the team suffered -- data shows New York in the top 10 in games missed -- the prospectus for next season, pending the Lin matter and recoveries for Stoudemire and Shumpert, is bright ...

It wasn’t very exciting, more of a by-the-numbers win, but that’s probably how it should be given their team competition. If the Heat’s playoff run is like climbing Everest, this first-round victory would amount to little more than setting up at base camp.

Down 14 points with 12 minutes to go, Carmelo Anthony hit one of his patented contested mid-range jumpers.

With Amar’e Stoudemire back in the line-up after missing two games with a cut hand, the Knicks extended this series and staved off elimination on Sunday with a thrilling 89-87 victory, the first playoff win for the franchise since 2001.

Many would question the validity of the victory given the circumstances. The Heat, perhaps mentally checked out of the series and not giving 100 percent effort, gave this one away to the Knicks, who had to play with a sense of urgency or face the end of their season.

The Knicks went on a bit of a run with Jeremy Lin at point guard, sparking the whole “Linsanity” craze but the team has also been able to win games without him in the lineup. The team avoided elimination from the playoffs by beating the Heat on Sunday, but there won’t be any miraculous return to the lineup for Lin in the 2012 Playoffs.

For updates and perspective on the New York Knicks, head on over to Posting and Toasting or check out SB Nation New York. For all news and information regarding the Miami Heat, please visit Peninsula Is Mightier.

For updates and perspective on the New York Knicks, head on over to Posting and Toasting or check out SB Nation New York. For all news and information regarding the Miami Heat, please visit Peninsula Is Mightier.

For updates and perspective on the New York Knicks, head on over to Posting and Toasting or check out SB Nation New York. For all news and information regarding the Miami Heat, please visit Peninsula Is Mightier.

The first half was an ugly one, neither team could get much going, and the Heat led by six. Carmelo Anthony had 18 points but the rest of his team had just 20, which was foreshadowing for how the game would end. Amar’e Stoudemire returned with a heavily wrapped left hand — courtesy of the world’s most famous fire extinguisher — and played surprisingly well, scoring 20 points with 10 rebounds, and shooting 8-for-13 from the floor.

For updates and perspective on the New York Knicks, head on over to Posting and Toasting or check out SB Nation New York. For all news and information regarding the Miami Heat, please visit Peninsula Is Mightier.

Related: Video of Baron Davis’ knee injury | Miami Heat players recoil in horror after Davis goes down.

Davis suffered the injury trying to go on a fast break midway through the third quarter on Sunday. He tried to step through to go for a layup, and his right knee buckled. He had to be taken off the court on a stretcher, which should give you some indication about how serious this knee injury is.

Sunday’s game tips off at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on ABC.

For all news and information regarding the Miami Heat, please visit Peninsula Is Mightier. For updates and perspective on the New York Knicks, head on over to Posting and Toasting or check out SB Nation New York.

In short, as Woodson noted in an interview with ESPN New York’s Chris Hunt, the Heat have ruined other Knicks’ offensive schemes simply by not leaving Steve.

In Thursday night’s loss, Novak got the start, played 22 minutes and was able to get off exactly two shot attempts -- this from a man who is in the NBA solely because of his abilities as a shooter. New York was unable to easily swing the ball to him with D-Wade waiting in the wings and, since Novak’s best use on the court is shooting the corner three-pointer, it isn’t all that difficult to keep an eye on him when the Knicks are on offense.

The loss was the 13th consecutive playoff defeat for the Knicks, the most in league history, a stat which you surely won’t hear repeated a few million times before Game 4. New York’s chances of winning the series look, well, bleak after going down 3-0, but Knicks fans can hold out hope that that streak won’t continue for another season.

Important GIFs and videos:

There was some doubt that Bosh would return in time to play for the Heat. For one, the birth took place in Miami, and Game 3 is being played in New York in Madison Square Garden. For another, the birth of a child is a life-changing event, and the Heat probably wouldn’t have blamed Bosh if he chose to stay with his wife. However, despite all of this, it appears Bosh will be catching a flight to New York in time to play for Miami on Thursday night.

The Heat hold a 2-0 lead in the series. Game 3 is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.

But let’s get one thing straight well in advance of this story: if you criticize Chris Bosh for wanting to be there for the birth of his child at the cost of a playoff game, you are a horrible, horrible human being.

Because it’s Bosh, you can almost hear the Cowherdian narrative forming. First, the jokes:

No. 2 Miami Heat at No. 7 New York Knicks

7 p.m. ET -- Game 3, Eastern Conference Quarterfinals | Heat lead, 2-0

National TV: TNT

For news and analysis on these two teams, check out Heat outpost Peninsula Is Mightier, Knicks blog Poasting And Toasting, and SB Nation New York.

↵In the wake of Amar’e Stoudemire assaulting a fire extinguisher case and sitting at least one playoff game, SB Nation’s Dan Rubenstein and Matt Ufford offer up suggestions for both Stoudemire and any other NBA player looking to take out their post-game aggression on hard, stationary objects without sacrificing blood and game time.

↵As an added bonus, this video is literally the first time the term “koosh ball” has appeared on camera in 14 years.

Stoudemire’s status for the rest of the series remains up in the air. Isola reports that Stoudemire will see a specialist on Tuesday to determine if there is any ligament damage. Meanwhile, an ESPN New York report suggests there is a “possibility” Stoudemire will not play the rest of the series.

The Knicks trail 2-0 after Monday’s 104-94 loss in Game 2. Game 3 is currently scheduled for Thursday at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks are looking to snap a 12-game playoff losing streak that dates all the way back to 2001.

Or, he punched the metal and glass case that holds the fire extinguisher. Didn’t technically get a chance to attack the fire extinguisher itself. Either way, Go Knicks! To give you a brief recap, this was how the news broke minutes after the game:

Then this became the best tweet of the NBA Playoffs so far:

For the official reaction from the New York fanbase, however, we turn our attention to the always excellent Seth Rosenthal over at Posting and Toasting. His recaps are legendary and, even in a loss, he finds ways to make everyone smile (sheepishly, in disgust).

The answer to Rosenthal’s final question probably isn’t going to be what he wants to hear, unfortunately. It’ll be awfully difficult for the Knicks to make up for the loss of Stoudemire but, on the bright side, anything is probably possible at playoff time.

The Knicks are saying that Stoudemire has a “laceration” on his left hand, and paramedics were called to the scene.

Stoudemire has struggled mightily since returning from a back injury, scoring just nine points in Game 2 and struggling on defense.

Noteworthy GIFs and videos:

Dwyane Wade disregards Mike Bibby’s shoe needs

Chandler’s suffered from what sounds like a terrible case of the flu, but Yahoo! Sports’ Marc Spears reports that the big man seems to be feeling better heading into the new week.

In the Knicks’ opening-game loss, Chandler turned the ball over seven times in 21 minutes as the Heat cruised to a 33-point victory. If Chandler’s indeed healthy for Monday night’s game, the tides may change -- or, at the very least, it’ll likely be much more difficult for the Heat to score inside.

The return of Lin would be a big lift for New York, who lost Game 1 of the series on Sunday 100-67, and lost guard Iman Shumpert to a torn ACL injury.

Berger has the details from Miami:

Making matters worse for the Knicks, promising rookie Iman Shumpert suffered a bad knee injury in the third quarter and did not return. Shumpert is tasked with guarding Wade so, if he misses an extended period of time, the Knicks are in trouble.

Game 2 is scheduled for Monday night at 7 p.m.

The rookie guard writhed in pain as ABC went to commercial break; reporters in the arena tweeted that not only was Shumpert helped from the floor, but that a Knicks trainer held the back of the guard’s knee for support.

For more on the Knicks, visit Posting And Toasting and SB Nation New York.