Heat-Bobcats Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSON
Posted Dec 26 2012 12:20AM

Just when the Miami Heat appeared vulnerable, they've surged and again look like one of the league's best teams.

Wednesday night's game in Charlotte appears to be a mismatch as the Bobcats try to snap a 15-game losing streak overall and an eight-game skid against the Heat.

The Heat lost three of five from Dec. 4-12, one of which was only the second of three wins this season for Washington. Miami (19-6) has won five straight since that rough patch, with the first four coming by an average of 18.0 points.

Though if there's an opportunity for the Bobcats to sneak up on the Heat, Wednesday might be it.

Miami will be playing for the second straight night after a grueling 103-97 win over Oklahoma City on Christmas. The NBA Finals rematch left LeBron James saying he was "tired as hell" more than an hour after finishing with 29 points, nine rebounds and eight assists to help the franchise match its best 25-game start. James has scored at least 20 in his last 30 regular-season games and in 46 games overall.

The Heat needed a couple of unlikely performances - 19-for-19 team free-throw shooting and a season-high 20 points from Mario Chalmers - to ensure the win.

"I got going early," Chalmers said. "And I stuck with it."

Charlotte (7-20) initially showed promise after last year's 7-59 debacle with a 7-5 start to the season, but a 110-88 loss at Denver on Saturday marked the team's 15th straight defeat. The Bobcats lost the final 23 games of last season, and the league record is Cleveland's 26 from two years ago.

They allowed 99.6 points per game through their first 12 contests - not an elite mark but substantially better than their league-worst 109.4 since then. Opponents have particularly exposed Charlotte on the interior, with the Nuggets scoring 78 points in the paint.

"We're a young team," said leading scorer Kemba Walker, who is averaging 18.3 points. "We've got a few vets, but our core group is really young. Losing is one of the hardest things you can ever go through, especially losing as many as we've lost. But at the same time, you've got to keep your chin up. You've got to know that these losses will turn into wins one day."

Recent injuries make matters worse for the Bobcats. Ben Gordon (right knee soreness) and Gerald Henderson (bruised shin), who combined to average 26.5 points, could return Wednesday, but Byron Mullens is expected to miss significant time because of an ankle sprain he sustained in the final moments Saturday. Mullens is averaging 11.6 points and a team-high 7.8 rebounds.

Miami won the three meetings last season by an average of 21.0 points, and hasn't lost to the Bobcats since March 9, 2010.

Chris Bosh, a career 19.7 per game scorer, is averaging 24.0 points lifetime against Charlotte, his highest average against any opponent.

James, Heat hand Bobcats 16th straight loss 105-92

By STEVE REED
Posted Dec 27 2012 12:41AM

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) LeBron James grew up watching wrestling.

So when Ric "The Nature Boy" Flair walked into the arena on Wednesday night, one of the NBA's best entertainers knew it was time to put on his own show.

James did just that.

The reigning MVP had 27 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists as the Heat handed the Charlotte Bobcats their 16th straight loss, 105-92 on Wednesday night.

Dwyane Wade added 29 points and nine rebounds, and Mario Chalmers had 17 points as the Heat opened a four-game trip with a win.

"When I was a kid, I loved wrestling," James said. "He was one of the guys I loved, too. I think he's one of the creators of what we call swag these days with the Rolexes and the stretch limos and all the girls and all that stuff. He's one of the creators of swag."

James showed some swag of his own early with four dunks in the first five minutes to get the Heat off to a quick start en route to their sixth straight win.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said before the game his team respected the Bobcats. However, Spoelstra hinted he was a little worried about the energy Miami expended in a win over Oklahoma city and whether they would be able to get up for the struggling Bobcats.

Spoelstra talked to his players before the game, and his words seemed to work.

Miami quickly opened a 9-0 lead behind a 3-pointer by Chalmers and three straight dunks - two by James and another by Chris Bosh, who had 14 points. James was the catalyst in the first quarter with 11 points - eight on fast-break dunks - with four steals and four rebounds.

"I thought we came in with the right mindset and disposition," Spoelstra said. "We were a little more inconsistent in the second half, but we found a way. That Charlotte team continues to claw and scratch and plays hard regardless of the tough road they've had. They just keep on coming at you."

It looked as though Miami was on its way to a blowout win. That wasn't the case.

While the Heat never trailed and led by as many as 19, they couldn't deliver the knockout punch to the Bobcats, who were playing without starting center Byron Mullens, guard Ben Gordon, and forward Tyrus Thomas due to injuries.

Down by 17 at halftime, the Bobcats whittled the lead down to 84-82 with 7:16 left when Gerald Henderson completed a three-point play.

But James knocked down a 3-pointer, Wade hit jumpers from 17 and 19 feet, and Shane Battier added a 3-pointer from the right corner to complete an 11-3 run that pushed the lead to 10.

Miami wasn't challenged again.

"That is what we're going to face on the road," Wade said. "The home team is not going to go away. We understand that. We have been through that over the last three years here so we're comfortable and confident in those situations. It's about making the right plays on both ends of the floor."

James called it a bunker mentality.

"We understand that we haven't played great basketball on the road so far," James said. "But, we were able to take care of business tonight. For the most part over the last few weeks we've been playing some great basketball."

Wade drew boos from the crowd after he delivered a knee to the groin of Ramon Sessions in the second half. But Sessions, who believed that Wade intentionally struck him, was actually called for a foul.

Kemba Walker had 27 points, and Sessions added 19 points for the Bobcats (7-21), who haven't won since Nov. 24.

Hakim Warrick, making his first start for the Bobcats in place of Mullens, had 18 points and nine rebounds. Sessions provided a big lift in a reserve role by hitting 7 of 12 shots, most coming off drives to the basket against an outmatched Mike Miller.

Despite the loss, Walker said taking the defending champions to the wire was a needed boost of confidence for a young team like the Bobcats.

"I thought we played well in the second half," Walker said. "We really got after it and played hard and played up and down. We played like we did early in the season. If we keep that up, we'll be fine."

NOTES: Heat guard Ray Allen missed the game because of a sore right shoulder. Allen was injured while setting a screen on Kendrick Perkins in the second half of Tuesday night's win over Oklahoma City. ... Charlotte's Gana Diop has four blocked shots in each of the last two games. He had one on James at the end of the first quarter.

Notebook: Heat 105, Bobcats 92

Derek S. Smith, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Dec 26, 2012 10:55 PM - Updated Wed Dec 26, 2012 10:55 PM

THE FACTS: Dwyane Wade scored a game-high 29 points including 13 in the fourth quarter as the Miami Heat held off the pesky Charlotte Bobcats 105-92 for their sixth straight Wednesday night at Time Warner Cable Arena. Charlotte, which was paced by 27 points from Kemba Walker, has now lost 16 consecutive games after starting the season 7-5. The Heat are off to a franchise-best 20-6 record.

QUOTABLE: "We're not a team that trying to win in two quarters or three quarters. We know it takes 48 minutes to win a basketball game and we're not going to shortcut anything. We know teams are going to make runs and we have to be able to withstand their run and make enough plays offensively and defensively to come away with it."
-- Heat's LeBron James

THE STAT: Miami leads the NBA in 3-point shooting at 40.9 percent on the season and are the only team making at least 40 percent of their attempts. The Heat were 12-for-23 (52.2 percent) against Charlotte while the Bobcats were just 5-for-14 (35.7). Miami has now made at least 10 3-pointers in a game nine times this year. In addition to topping the league in shooting from behind the arc, they also lead the NBA in overall field-goal percentage at 49.5.

TURNING POINT: LeBron James drained a 24-footer to jump start a 14-5 run which put the game out of reach for the Charlotte Bobcats. Gerald Henderson had pulled the Bobcats within a bucket at 84-82, but Miami wouldn't let the Bobcats get closer. Wade added a pair of jumpers in the middle of the run which James finished with another long 3 for a 98-87 advantage.

QUOTABLE II: "That is what we're going to face on the road. The home team is not going to go away. We understand that. We have been through that over the last three years here so we're comfortable and confident in those situations. It's about making the right plays on both ends of the floor."
-- Dwyane Wade

HOT: Wade and James carried Miami in the fourth quarter. The dynamic duo combined for 21 of the team's 27 fourth-quarter points and made 7-for-9 from the floor including three from behind the arc. They also had five of the team's eight rebounds and added two key blocked shots.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Mario Chalmers has stepped up offensively for the Heat the last two games. Chalmers is averaging 18.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists in that stretch and has not committed a turnover either. Chalmers made four threes in each of the two games. He is currently averaging just 7.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists on the season.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Former Charlotte mayor and current North Carolina governor-elect Pat McCrory was in attendance. The "Nature Boy" Rick Flair was also in attendance at the game and LeBron James noticed. "When I was a kid," James said. "I loved wrestling. He was one of the guys I loved, too. I think he's one of the creators of what we call swag these days with the Rolexes and the stretch limos and all the girls and all that stuff. He's one of the creators of swag."

ROOKIE WATCH: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had six points, five rebounds, two assists and on e steal for the Bobcats in 22 minutes but was again plagued by early foul trouble which limited him to just 22 minutes. Fellow rookie Jeffery Taylor had just one point in seven minutes of action.

NOTABLE: Kemba Walker scored 27-plus points for the fourth time in the last six games and 20-plus for the eighth time in the last 13 games. Hakim Warrick recorded season highs of 18 points and nine rebounds. Ramon Sessions scored in double figures for the 23rd time in 28 games. DeSagana Diop has recorded nine blocks in the last two games. LeBron James scored 20-plus points for the 26th straight game to start the season and recorded his 15th double-double. Dwyane Wade scored 20-plus points for the 12th game this season. Chris Bosh scored in double figures for the 23rd time. Miami has won 28 of its 31 games in December since the 2010-11 season and at 4-0 is the only undefeated team in the second night of a back-to-back this season. The Heat have won eight straight against the Bobcats, but have dropped six of the last 11 in Charlotte. Miami has won five of its last six by double digits. Miami had led the duration of the fourth quarter in eight of their last nine games and have now won four games this year in which they never trailed. The trio of James, Wade and Chris Bosh combined for 70 points. It's the 57th time since coming together that the trio has reached that point total.

UP NEXT: For the Heat, Friday at Detroit, Saturday at Milwaukee, Monday at Orlando. For the Bobcats, Friday at Brooklyn, Saturday vs. New Orleans, Monday at Chicago.

• Heat: Allen, Pittman
• Bobcats: Mullens, Thomas

• Heat: Haslem
• Bobcats: Henderson

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC
• Officials: #49 Tom Washington, #33 Sean Corbin, #37 Lauren Holtkamp
• Attendance: 19602
• Duration: 2:14