Heat Rally In Fourth, Finish Off Bulls In Game 5 [VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS]
The Miami Heat are back in the Eastern Conference finals as LeBron James ignited a big rally in the fourth quarter to lead his team to a 94-91 victory in Game 5 at THE American Airlines Arena on Wednesday.
James scored 23 points, 8 assists, and 7 rebounds and did most of the damage on the Bulls in the fourth quarter to lead the Heat to the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight year.
The four-time NBA MVP played as the team's primary ball facilitator during the Heat's fourth quarter, finding his teammates with ease for open jumpers.
Shane Battier, who has been silent the entire playoffs, was the beneficiary of James' passes as he came alive at the right time to knock down a couple of three-point bombs, which ignited a 25-14 run in the final period.
Dwayne Wade shook off his injured knee to deliver 18 points. But aside from his point production, the former Finals MVP made the key plays that proved to be pivotal in the Heat's rally.
With the Heat down by as many as 11 in the second half, Wade came through with a blocked shot and a thunderous putback dunk all in that game-changing 45-second span.
After that sequence of plays, the Heat finally took control of the ballgame and cranked up their play on both ends of the floor.
Carlos Boozer racked up 26 points and 14 rebounds and Nate Robinson tallied 21 points and 6 dimes for the Bulls, who played without Derrick Rose for the 99th straight game. Aside from their star point guard, Chicago also missed the contributions of Kirk Hinrich (bruised calf) and Luol Deng (spinal tap) in the series.
The Heat just shot 45.7 percent from the field and forced the Bulls to commit 14 turnovers.
Miami becomes the first team to punch their ticket to the Conference finals with the Indiana Pacers looking to finish off New York Knicks on Thursday.
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