HEAD COACH MIKE BROWN
(On the game):
“I thought in the third quarter we started to dig ourselves into a small hole. Miami went on a little run. They got up on us but the thing that got us out of it, I thought we turned it up defensively. We got deflections, we got steals, we got stops because we limited them to one shot. We were able to get out and attack in transition. When we turn it up like that defensively, we can be a dangerous team in transition. I thought everybody that came in the game, everyone that played in the game really contributed. It was a very good team win. As long as we continue to try and embrace our identity, which is getting stops, I think offensively, we’ve made some improvements. We had 23 assists, we got to the free throw line 34 times but as long as we continue to try and embrace our identity which is on the defensive end of the floor, we’re going to gain confidence and we’re going to become a better team because of that because we’ll have something to hang our hat on.”

(On the play of his frontcourt):
“They were tremendous. Also, Dwayne Jones played and he played about six and a half minutes and his six minutes were good minutes for us. Whoever he guarded he made them feel him, he got some big rebounds for us and he was a presence down there. All four of our bigs did a terrific job of playing tonight no matter who they were guarding.”

(On the team’s defense in the third quarter and finding the team’s defensive identity):
“It’s been in spurts. That’s a little bit what our problem is. Against the Lakers, we stepped it up and we defended especially as the game went along. Tonight we were a little bit more consistent than the Lakers game. It wasn’t just in the fourth quarter that we stepped it up and really defended. That identity, for us as a team, has to continue to be embraced, not just this quarter or that quarter or this game or that game, we have to try and embrace it and know who we are all the time in order for us to gain that confidence.”

(On Larry Hughes’ play tonight):
“Larry did a nice job guarding Jason Williams, guarding Dwyane Wade and he did a nice job of getting us into our offense…Larry played well. Not in just one or two categories, I thought across the board he did a lot of different things to help the team win defensively, offensively, both ends of the floor throughout the game.”

LARRY HUGHES
(On the team’s improved defensive effort today):
“We have to get stops, not just for one quarter, we have to get stops throughout the game. That gives us a chance to go out and get easy buckets. We have to play defense without fouling and we have to figure out a way to do that for 48 minutes.”

(On his contributions in today’s game):
“I’m just trying to play. Playing the game, understanding the situation and just pretty much fighting through it. The shot didn’t really fall but you have to do other things. Play defense, make sure everyone is involved and just try to play a steady game even if the shots aren’t falling.”

(On his effort today):
”I have to go out there and play basketball. I just want to leave it at that, all of the outside stuff. I just want to try and focus on getting wins and getting this record to where it’s supposed to be. Just make a push, especially with January coming up and the next month being the All-Star break. You want to make up a lot of ground.”

(On his personal goals within the team goals):
“At the end of the day, you have to step up and do what it takes to put wins on the board. You have to do whatever it takes. Obviously you always have personal goals that you set. A lot of times you want those personal goals to coincide with team wins. But sometimes it doesn’t work that way, you have to respect that and take it from there.”

LEBRON JAMES
(On the team’s defense):
“When we play defense we are a pretty good team, and when we don’t we don’t look so well.”

(On the team’s consistency):
“I’m not sure. We will figure it out. Today was a good step.”

(On the team’s energy and effort):
“We were in tune defensively. We wanted to get stops, and when we get stops we are very good at running out. We held them to 14 points in the third quarter. It enabled us to get out and do what we had to do on the offensive end.”

(On his jaw):
“I got elbowed by Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal) in the face, which is never a good thing.”

(On Udonis Haslem and Shaquille O’Neal):
“Udonis and Shaq are a very good one-two punch in the interior, and I think our bigs with Zydrunas (Illgauskas), Drew (Gooden), and even Dwayne (Jones) and Andy (Varejao) all came in and did a great job of trying to bring intensity. They also scored the ball and rebounded too, so they were pretty good.”

(On the win):
“I think we played pretty good. We could play better, but today we showed energy and we wanted to help each other on the defensive end. I think guys wanted to stop their own man first and then rely on help second, so that was pretty good.”

(On the game being a step in the right direction):
“It has to be. We can’t take one step forward and two steps back at this point. We need to continue to go, because we are heading into January for the last three or four months of the season. Going into the playoffs, we need to start getting in tune.”

(On the importance of the win before heading to Dallas):
“It’s important any time you go out and play. No matter where you are going next or who you play next it’s important to get a win. Both us and Miami are struggling, so you don’t want a team to come in here and beat you on your own court.”

HEAD COACH PAT RILEY
(On the game’s turnaround):
“It was an absolute complete turnaround. I’m really perplexed, we’re ahead 53-43 and playing well. And, it just went. Three or four plays, there were turnovers that led to fast breaks that come got them back close. Then, they got the run, Gibson hit a couple of threes and LeBron started making all the plays. We just let it go. It’s a shame that we played 30 minutes of very good basketball, then we just let it go, let everything go, the defensive intensity. They only had 14 points in the paint in the first half and had 32 in the second half. Then, offensively, we just went flat.”

(On the cause of the offensive problems):
“Sharing the ball. We’ve got offensive-minded players and we’ve got a couple of guys who will facilitate, but you’ve just got to keep moving the ball. That’s it. I think we went through a period of 4 or 5 minutes where we didn’t move the ball enough. And, we forced things and got turnovers and the game changed. It’s a lack of execution, it’s a lack of not getting open, our players have to get open when a team begins to put the pressure on you because they’re down. Our guards weren’t getting open, didn’t create leads and we couldn’t run offensive sets because they simply didn’t create leads. We got lazy with it. It’s a function, really, of execution as much as anything else.”

(On the Heat roster, is it a good mix):
“The mix seems to be right. In the last 11 games, every single game has been down to the wire, and we’ve been in those situations so many times that we want to try to develop a ritual of, ‘OK, now we’re in these games again and it’s time to close, it’s time to make the plays that we have to make.’ Today is another example. At 53-43, they (Cavs) were a little sideways and we had a chance to take that thing to 18 or 20 and it just went. We came out of that timeout and it just went and never stopped going until the end of the game. Very disappointing. “

(On the key to the turnaround):
“I think our offense was more inept. We weren’t scoring, we were turning the ball over and we had 10 turnovers in the third quarter and that doesn’t bode well. And, LeBron started getting away from us a little bit on pick and rolls and their big guys were doing a great job in the paint, that’s how they got 32 points in the second half.”

(On Wade’s shoulder as a factor):
“You have to ask him. He’s been sore the last couple of days. I really don’t know.”

(On possible team frustration):
“Well, they get frustrated. They’re all good at halftime, they’re all good in the third quarter. As soon as things go badly, instead of just buckling down, and everybody stepping up, there is a frustration switch that goes on..”

DWYANE WADE
(On team’s frustration and why it happens):
“I have no idea. If I knew, I’d try to correct it, so I have no take.”

(On losing a 10-point lead):
“We just turned the ball over and let them back in the game. Any home team that gets momentum is going to take advantage of it. We turned it over and they got some easy buckets and they got their rhythm and momentum and started running their offense.”

(On his performance):
“I was just shooting them and missing some. Just missing some shots. It wasn’t their defense, it was nothing that they did special. No factor (shoulder), I was just missing my free throws.”

(On the team’s roster and mix, is it right):
“That’s not my job. My job is to go out there and play. I don’t worry about the mix, that’s coach’s job, he’s the president.”

SHAQUILLE O'NEAL
(On the loss of a 10-point lead):
“I think we were very, very careless with the ball. We had 10 turnovers (3rd quarter), our defense got loosened up a little bit and they were able to score a lot of points in the paint. As soon as we’re able to figure out and take care of those things, maybe we can become a pretty good team.”