In a rematch of last year's NBA Finals, LeBron James and Kevin Durant, two of the league's top scorers on two of the league's best teams, clash once again as the Oklahoma City Thunder (39-13) take on the NBA world champion Miami Heat (35-14) Thursday night in Oklahoma City to close out the first half of the NBA season.
The last time these two 2012 NBA Finals opponents met on Christmas Day, James and Durant dueled each other down to the last ticks of the fourth quarter. Durant outscored James 33-29, but a perfect 19-of-19 free throw night for the Heat and two missed game-tying threes from OKC ended up giving the first of their only two meetings this season to the Heat, who pulled out a 103-97 victory.
The Thunder, who are chasing the San Antonio Spurs for the top record in the West-and in the NBA-are coming off a humbling 109-94 loss to the Utah Jazz Tuesday. Durant is averaging career-bests in shooting percentage from the field (52), 3-point range (43) and foul line (90.4), plus in assists (4.4), steals (1.6) and blocks (1.2).
However, James comes into this game scoring at a record pace, having become the first player in NBA history this week to score 30 points while shooting 60 percent from the field in six consecutive games. And the Heat are also riding a six-game winning streak, coming off a 117-104 win over the Portland Trail Blazers at home on Tuesday. However, they face a tough challenge against the Thunder, who are 23-3 at home.
Could this be a preview-and a rematch-for this year's Finals? Latinos Post breaks down the key matchups for this game:
Power forward: Rashard Lewis/Shane Battier, Heat, vs. Serge Ibaka, Thunder
With Udonis Haslam out with a right leg contusion, the honus will fall on either Lewis or Battier, a tough defender with a sweet perimeter shot, to hold down the fort against Ibaka, the No.2 shot blocker in the league.
Ibaka, who also is scoring 11.6 points in the last five games, can also provide a pinch of offense. But his primary role will be in trying to help double up on James in an effort to slow him down.
Advantage: Thunder
Small Forward: LeBron James, Heat, vs. Kevin Durant, Thunder
Forget match-up of the game, this is the match-up of the week.
James and Durant went toe-to-toe with each other the whole game in their last matchup on Christmas Day. And entering their rematch on Thursday to close out the first half of the season, these two players are performing at a torrid pace.
James is on fire right now, playing at a level never seen before, becoming the first NBA player to have scored at least 30 points on 60 percent shooting in the last six games. And over the last five games, james is averaging 31.0 points per game and shooting an astonishing 73.7 percent from the field.
Durant is no slouch himself, the leading scorer in the league (29.0 points this season) averaging 23.2 points on 56.7 percent shooting since Feb. 4. It's going to be a contest of wills, plain and simple, as these two always bring out the best in each other. But Durant will need some help and have to try and keep the ball out of James' hands, perhaps with some help from Ibaka. Whoever can limit the number of touches the other has on offense will have the better shot of coming out on top.
Advantage: Even
Center: Chris Bosh, Heat vs. Kendrick Perkins, Thunder
Bosh had a decent night against OKC last time with 16 points, while Perkins was mostly quiet on the boards with five rebounds and only four points. Still, Perkins, a defensive wall, is one of the few centers in the league that has a chance of matching up well with All-Star Bosh, who is averaging 22.3 points in the last five games and coming off a 32-point night against Portland on Tuesday.
Advantage: Even
Shooting Guard: Dwayne Wade, Heat vs. Thabo Sefolosha, Thunder
James may get the most attention, but without Wade, the Heat are not as heavily favored to win the East as they are now. Wade is dropping 25.0 points against opponents in the last five games, and performed very strongly with a 21-point night against the Thunder on Dec. 25.
Sefolosha, who has made his name as a stopper on the defensive end, will have to be aggressive in dealing with Wade, who is an All-Star for a reason with his savvy and skill, but can be contained with the right pressure from the backcourt.
Advantage: Heat
Point guard: Mario Chalmers, Heat vs. Russell Westbrook, Thunder
There's something about Oklahoma City for Chalmers. After playing a critical role in helping the Heat beat the Thunder in the Finals last season, Chalmers scored 20 points on Christmas Day for Miami to play scrooge to his West rivals.
To limit the damage, Westbrook, who is averaging 22.5 points this season with 8.0 assists, will still have to be dynamic as he was when he scored 21 against Miami, but he will have to really bring his defensive game home not only to take Chalmers out of the game, but to make sure Wade doesn't get too hot.
Advantage: Thunder
Bench
For Oklahoma City, Kevin Martin has paid dividends since coming over from Houston in exchange for James Harden, providing a huge lift off the bench for the Thunder. Collison provides solid effort from the bench and streaky-scoring Reggie Jackson can also provide a lift for the Thunder.
Meanwhile, Ray Allen, averaging 10.6 points this season, is coming off a game where he lit up Portland on 5-of-11 shooting from the field, including 3-of-6 from downtown to finish with 14 points Tuesday. Mike Miller can provide a nice touch from downtown, too, but with Haslem out and Battier or Lewis to fill in at the starter position, their bench doesn't look quite as deep.
Advantage: Thunder
Game Time, TV Schedule and Live Score
Game Time starts at 8 p.m. EST on TNT. Live Score is available via TV Companion.
Live Stream
For live streaming, visit TNT Overtime by clicking this link.
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