MoeJackson

We’ve heard the statistic so much that it’s simply part of the conversation when a massive game 5 happens. The team who wins game 5 (when the series is tied at 2) goes on to win the series 86% of the time. Sure, momentum and confidence has a lot to do with the trend but it comes down to simple math. Miami only has to win 1 of 2 while Indiana has to win two in a row. That’s going to be a tall order for this Pacers team because of how well the Heat was able to turn it on last night. A strong 3rd quarter, led by LeBron, was the difference as Miami takes a 3-2 series lead in a critical 5th game. Things were physical throughout the game but especially early on, we all saw the Hansbrough-Birdman scuffle that happened during the 2nd quarter. It seemed to fit the Pacers more as they played a much better game in the first half and had the lead going into the locker room. Then what happened? Well, apparently Juwan Howard of all people gave a halftime speech and LeBron followed it up with his own version, most of his having to be blurred out by TNT. The result was a 3rd quarter that was simply a spectacle to witness, especially during the final 5 minutes or so when LeBron (30 pts, 8 reb, 6 ast) went into” beastmode” and absolutely dominated the Pacers.

At the same time LeBron was doing his MVP thing, the Pacers were finding it very difficult to get anything going on offense. Part of it was the Heat’s ability to turn it on defensively but the biggest reason was the terrible play by Hill and Stephenson. If the Pacers want to extend this series to a 7th game, their guards must play better. Better would be good but even mediocre play would be improvement from last night’s performance when the Indiana guards combined for five points. Quite the drop off from 39 points in the previous game. Hibbert could have rebounded a bit better last night but his offense is on point. Paul George was great once again (27 pts, 11 reb, 5 ast) continuing to do his best to try and offset whatever LeBron performance arises. Also, I think Udonis Haslem needs to be getting more praise because he was very critical to Miami’s 3rd quarter success where they clinched the game and essentially, the series. I don’t think the Pacers can come back 2-3 with one of those games on the road. I’m hoping for a 7th game, mostly because we all love game 7s but I think either way we’re headed to a Spurs-Heat series in the Finals. Essentially a Mavericks fan’s worst nightmare.