Heat Strike: Miami Holds On For Game 2 Win, 1-1 Finals Tie

Well, yikes. It’s true that Westbrook didn’t play his best game of basketball on Thursday night -- in his defense, even Durant wasn’t flawless -- but it’s kind of troubling to see that he’s the one being blamed every time something doesn’t go right for the Thunder.

For more on the Heat, head over to Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. For Thunder news and notes, visit Welcome To Loud City or check out SB Nation Kansas City. And for news, analysis and everything else revolving around the NBA Playoffs, be sure to visit SB Nation’s dedicated NBA hub.

It would seem a bit risky considering Perkins and Ibaka should be able to present mismatches themselves in the right gameplan, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt if Harden is able to get hot right off of the bat.

For more on the Heat, head over to Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. For Thunder news and notes, visit Welcome To Loud City or check out SB Nation Kansas City. And for news, analysis and everything else revolving around the NBA Playoffs, be sure to visit SB Nation’s dedicated NBA hub.

Durant ended the game with a pretty efficient line in the box score with 32 points while shooting 12-of-22 from the floor -- including a pretty solid four of 10 from beyond the arc -- but that wasn’t enough to get him a free pass from our friends at Welcome to Loud City. J.A. Sherman, one of SB Nation’s excellent Thunder bloggers, actually noted Durant’s game as one of the three keys ... and not in a good way.

Consider the preceding paragraphs were written from the perspective of a Thunder fan. And then, once you’re over that, think about how much sense it makes.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have made a habit this postseason of falling behind big then coming back late. They did it against the Lakers in the second round. They did it against the Spurs in the Conference Finals. And they did it in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, when the Thunder fell behind by 13 in the second quarter only to rally for the win in an impressive second half.

Thursday night in Game 2 they were at again, this time digging an even deeper hole, and digging it faster as well. The Thunder missed 11 of their first 12 shots while committing four turnovers, and were behind 18-2 before they got their second basket with four and a half minutes left in the first quarter. The lead got all the way up to 17 a couple of minutes later, at which point Oklahoma City began the long, slow climb back into contention.

All that said ... James definitely fouled Durant here.

As soon as James realized the play was happening, he extended his elbow into Durant’s midsection. Before Durant pulled up for the floater, James had his arm under Durant’s arm. Here, look:

Now, the series shifts to the Heat’s home court. Game 3 takes place Sunday night.

For more on the Heat, head over to Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. For Thunder news and notes, visit Welcome To Loud City or check out SB Nation Kansas City. And for news, analysis and everything else revolving around the NBA Playoffs, be sure to visit SB Nation’s dedicated NBA hub.

Someone please give him lessons.

Running a play, any play, is better than nothing.

Here’s the video.

As you’d probably expect, Twitter exploded after that slam. Still, nobody outdid this Thunder fan’s reaction.

So far, they’ve gotten a lot of bail-out shots. Will that continue?

This only confirms my conspiracy theory that Derek Fisher is acting as a Lakers secret agent designed to sabotage the Thunder.

… And the fifth foul was a dumb one, going over the back on Udonis Haslem to try to get a rebound he had no chance of getting.

Scott Brooks is leaving him in for now, as he should. The Thunder are down 11 at home early in the fourth quarter. If they can’t make a run now, there won’t be any crunch time.

He has taken 17 shots and eight free throws in this game.

Observe:

It took over half of the third quarter for Scott Brooks to realize that he can’t play with both of his starting big men against the Heat’s small lineup. Finally, he took Serge Ibaka out to rest, putting in James Harden and playing Kevin Durant at power forward. The Thunder have scored four straight points, including an uncontested layup for Russell Westbrook.

Is it really so hard for Brooks to match the Heat’s small lineup?

Just like in the first quarter, the Miami Heat’s small starting lineup, with Chris Bosh at center and Shane Battier at power forward, is giving the Oklahoma City Thunder’s defense problems. It’s really hard to defend a team when they can space the floor that beautifully and have such great pick and roll players. I have to admit: I really don’t know what the Thunder can do schematically to counter this lineup. They just need to go small themselves.

Worse, it appears the Thunder’s defensive problems are affecting them on the offensive end. The ball is sticking too much.

The one good piece of news for the Thunder? James Harden is playing much, much better. With Mike Miller guarding him, Harden has gone to work, swishing a mid-range jumper, driving to the rim and hitting his first three shots.

I think Scott Brooks made a mistake waiting to put Harden into the game. Had he been inserted sooner, this Heat lead wouldn’t be so big.

The Miami Heat’s 15-point first-quarter lead is due to their renewed emphasis on posting up their stars. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade have dominated their matchups on the block, with Wade baiting Kevin Durant into his second foul with a shot fake.

This is a really smart strategy for Miami, as Jeff Van Gundy noted, because it slows the game down. But it’s also one that can be countered with stronger double teams. The Thunder are doing a very bad job of digging down and shrinking the floor when the ball goes into the post, giving James and Wade all the room they need to go to work.

OK, fine. He flopped.

It’s early, but it appears that Erik Spoelstra made a very good decision to start Chris Bosh at center with Shane Battier, rather than Udonis Haslem. Bosh’s presence has opened up the floor for the Heat offensively, which has been huge for Dwyane Wade in particular. Wade already has one layup on a pick and roll and nearly got another after a strong basket cut.

Wade’s making a concerted effort to use the open space, but it’s critical that the open space be there. It wasn’t in Game 1.

This is simply brilliant.

If you care to re-live it, here’s the video.

I don’t blame you one bit, Russell.