After suffering four consecutives losses against the Brooklyn Nets in the regular season, the Miami Heat bounced back with a remarkable statement on Tuesday night winning 107-86.
LeBron James led all scorers with 22 points and the Heat took the Eastern Conference semifinals opener.
Ray Allen added 19 points off the bench and Miami stayed perfect in five games in this postseason.
Deron Williams and Joe Johnson scored 17 points apiece, but Brooklyn’s defense allowed 52 points in the paint.
“We made a lot of mistakes. It came down to our defense tonight. Our game plan was not executed at all,” Williams told a postgame press conference.
The Nets had a day off after overcoming the Toronto Raptors in Game 7 of the first-round on Sunday, which might have affected Brooklyn’s veteran roster.
“They played better than us tonight. We have got to move on. In the playoffs you can’t allow them to make layup after layup,” Williams argued.
Nets coach Jason Kidd highlighted Miami’s offensive game: “They got the ball in the paint. They were the ones who kept attacking for 48 minutes and we did not,” he explained, adding that LeBron was a factor for Miami, especially when “he gets in the post he causes problems because of his strength and IQ.”
On the other hand, LeBron insisted that the Heat were in attack mode: “Our energy tonight was very high on the defensive and offensive end. We understand what this time of the year is all about,” James explained.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Thursday night.
