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 The Heat forward scored 16 of his game-high 32 points in the third
quarter, when his team took control of the game, and Miami earned a
107-88 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans at AmericanAirlines
Arena.
With about four minutes left in the game and the Heat up by 20
points, James went out of bounds while chasing a loose ball. Then,
before returning to the court, he leaned over and kissed a female
Heat fan on the cheek.
"She loves the Heat, and it was a great experience for her," James
said. "It's 2014 — it's all about sharing and caring. I was happy I
was able to do that for her."
The Pelicans (15-18) weren't in as jovial a mood.
In the past few days, they lost forward Ryan Anderson, their leading
scorer, to injury, got stranded for two days in Indianapolis due to
weather issues and lost consecutive road games to the top two teams
in the East — the Indiana Pacers and Miami.
Meanwhile, the Heat (27-8) improved their record in Miami to 16-3,
the second-best home mark in the NBA.
Overall, the Heat are second in the Eastern Conference behind the
Pacers. Miami, though, will now embark on a six-game road trip.
Heat guard Dwyane Wade had 22 points, eight rebounds and eight
assists as Miami turned an 11-point, third-quarter deficit into a
fourth-quarter rout.
"We're an old team," Wade said. "It takes us a while sometimes to
get the juices flowing. Young teams come in loose and ready, and we
have to get our bodies going a bit."
The Heat played without starting point guard Mario Chalmers, who sat
out with an Achilles tendon injury. He was replaced by Norris Cole,
who finished with nine points and two assists.
The Heat are 7-2 in the past two-plus seasons while starting their
backup point guard.
The Pelicans were led by forward Anthony Davis, who had 22 points,
12 rebounds, two blocks and three steals. Davis leads the NBA in
blocks and averages a double-double — more than 19 points and 10
rebounds.
"We have to do a better job of competing with the elite teams,"
Davis said. "In the second half, we took too many jumpers, stopped
attacking the basket."
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The Heat led 25-24 in an evenly played first quarter. Both
teams shot slightly better than 52 percent from the field. The
first-quarter standout was Davis, who had 10 points, five
rebounds, two blocks and two steals in 10 brilliant minutes.
New Orleans took a 49-43 halftime lead, holding the Heat to 35
percent shooting from the field in the second quarter. Davis
continued to shine with 16 points and 10 rebounds at the half.
Miami took control in the third quarter, outscoring New Orleans
31-22. James made six of his eight shots from the field in the
quarter, including two of three 3-point attempts, as the Heat
shot 61 percent from the floor. James also went 2-for-2 at the
foul line.
"Give them credit," Pelicans coach Monty Williams said. "They
turned up the pressure in the third quarter. They had 64 points
in the second half — that's not good defense.
"Our guys have to grow up. When you have a (first) half like we
did, (the Heat) are going to turn it up."
NOTES: Pelicans F Ryan Anderson is out indefinitely with a
herniated disk. He was injured Friday in a collision with
Celtics F Gerald Wallace. ... Pelicans C Jason Smith (shoulder
injury) returned after missing four straight games. ... Heat F
Shane Battier (strained quad) missed his third straight game.
... G Roger Mason Jr. and F Michael Beasley — the only two Heat
players without guaranteed contracts — had their situations
resolved Tuesday. Both now have their salaries guaranteed for
the rest of the season. ... After the Chicago Bulls traded F
Luol Deng to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night for C
Andrew Bynum and three draft picks, the rumor mill started
churning. The Bulls, seeking luxury-tax relief, cut Bynum, who
was rumored to be headed to the Heat or the Los Angeles
Clippers. But once Mason and Beasley were retained, that kept
the Heat roster full at 15 players and made a move for Bynum
less likely. ... Pelicans 7-foot-2 C Alexis Ajinca, in his third
NBA season, is coming off a career-high 17-point game Saturday
against the Pacers.
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