Miami Heat get ugly win over Charlotte Bobcats, 77-71; Cats fall to 7th spot in Eastern Conference playoff race
by David A. Arnott on Mar 20, 2010 10:26 PM EDT
15 comments
The Charlotte Bobcats lost a slugfest to the Miami Heat, 77-71. Both teams played tough defense, and since both have issues scoring to begin with, the high-octane defense resulted in a rough game with lots of missed shots.
Even Dwyane Wade struggled, shooting 6-18 from the field and only getting to the line for 4 free throw attempts.
The loss pushes the Cats to 35-34, and they now occupy the 7th spot in the Eastern Conference, a 1/2 game ahead of the Toronto Raptors, who are 34-34 after defeating the New Jersey Nets.
Remember... DESIGN A T-SHIRT FOR RUFUS ON FIRE: WIN A PRIZE!
Game thread comments, lowlights, and highlights after the jump.
GAME THREAD COMMENTS
PanthersFTW -- Whenever you can be part of a list including immortals like Daequan Cook, you have to do it.
Ourdaywillcome -- That call was so easy a caveman could've called it.
BAD
-- The Bobcats shot 21-72 for the game. That's 29%. Ouch. Stephen Jackson was a prime contributor to the suck, shooting 4-21. He managed 18 points, thanks to 10-10 from the free throw line, but that doesn't make up for all the lost possessions, and everyone played a part in that. In fact, the Cats went more than 13 minutes over the 3rd and 4th quarters without scoring a field goal.
-- (Not really a "bad" game, but it wasn't exactly good, either.) The weird part about Gerald Wallace is that even though he plays a dynamic style and explodes to the rim on both offense and defense, and even though he barrels down the court like a locomotive on the break, his great games always seem quiet, and his crappy and mediocre games always seem quiet. He doesn't have the right kind of attention-getting flash that other stars in the league have. So even though he was merely adequate, with 15 points on 4-12 shooting (thanks to 7-8 from the free throw line), with "only" 8 rebounds, it didn't stick out the way Jax's games do.
-- Bad for the Bobcats, exhilarating for basketball fans in general: Dwyane Wade had 5 blocks, and the Heat had 13 blocks total.
GOOD
-- Tyson Chandler looked more like his old self, scoring only 4 points, but grabbing 11 rebounds and playing his typically strong defense over 33 minutes.
-- Boris Diaw couldn't shoot at all tonight (no one could), shooting 5-15 from the field for 12 points, but he did pull down 9 rebounds, doing dirty work in a game requiring everyone to get down and especially dirty. Yes, I've graded Boris and Gerald on a curve, because Gerald has set a higher bar for himself.
-- The Cats' free throw shooting kept them in the game. The Heat weren't great shakes on offense, though the Cats were worse, so Charlotte needed to hold Miami to only 20 free throw attempts while going 27-34 from the line, themselves, just to make the game interesting in the end.
-- About that Miami offense, the Heat shot 36% from the field for the game, and 25% from three, even though Quentin Richardson went 50% from three on 6-12 shooting all by himself.
0 recs |
15 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
Head scratching stats I noticed
Felton and Augustin were 4-8 and 3-5 from the field while no other Bobcat shot over 33%
The Bobcats scored 24 in the second quarter and 26 in the second half
The Bobcats totaled 8 Assists while D Wade had 9
Chandler led the team with a +/- of +12 for the night
Miami is in deep trouble.
While watching this debacle tonight I found myself searching for some perspective.
We know this was an off night for the Bobcats. The reason we truly aren’t among the league elite is largely because we have nights like this a bit too often. You can’t be certain if the Cats team taking the floor on any given night are going to come out like they did against the Hawks or like they did this evening. If we fire on all cylinders there truly isn’t a team in this league we can’t beat. The sad truth is that we only reach that level about 60% of the time.
But this is a playoff push, right? Five teams, four slots, blah blah blah. So let’s look. The Bobcats and the Bucks are either peaking or close to it in recent weeks. For the Bucks it may have come a bit early and they could be going into the post-season overdue for a downturn. The Bobcats have (apart from tonight and in Indiana) been playing inspired ball as well. On paper, their remaining schedule looks pretty soft, but keep in mind that most of those games are in back-to-back clusters and that will make them a bit tougher than they appear. Chicago is in free-fall. Their hopes are dim. Toronto still has some fire in them and I think they have a pretty good chance of scoring the seven seed. But Miami… ouch.
Step away from the hot bowl of bummer you see as a Bobcats fan for a moment. Miami’s opponent shot 29% tonight and almost WON. The Heat played on their home court, held the visiting team without a single field goal for over 13 minutes, blocked 13 shots, and only gave up 71 points for the ENTIRE GAME and they still almost lost in the final moments.
Oh and one other thing to throw on top of the pile…
The officiating in the NBA is the most fair and accurate in all of pro sports. We all know that. Willickers, nobody would ever even THINK to be critical of such skilled referees. Oh wait. I don’t work for the NBA and Stern can’t fine me for speaking the truth. The Miami City Council would have shown less bias against the Bobcats tonight than the actual referees did. Talk about getting the homecourt calls! There was one moment early in the game where D-Wade all but pulled the ball OUT of the basket and stuffed it back in and wasn’t called for offensive goaltending. A few minutes later, one of the Bobcats was sent all but sprawling when two Heat players each grabbed an arm in the open court and PULLED. As I was wondering what they’d wished for, the ref called the foul… AGAINST THE BOBCAT!
Even with that kind of stellar work from the guys in the Foot Locker work shirts, Miami almost lost this game. Bobcats, Bucks, and Raptors fans have reason to be optimistic. I predict Miami and Chicago will decide the 8 seed in the last couple of games of the regular season. Whichever team falls apart the least will make it.
Beasley, Wade and company are pretty much screwed. After watching the way they played tonight and listening to the truckloads of trash-talk from them all season all I can say is that it couldn’t happen to a more deserving crew.
thank you for the optimistic light
but it still hurts to drop 2 close ones.
however, you do make a legit point. barring an arrival from LeBron or Bosh, Miami seems to be in trouble
--(insert quote, lyric, or joke here)
by StudMuffin15 on Mar 21, 2010 1:09 AM EDT up reply actions
Back-to-backs
No doubt the Bobcats are a good team and will make the playoffs. However last night proved that after an exhausting OT road game in Atlanta, we just weren’t the same team the next night. Hopefully, we can get focused for the upcoming back-to-backs.
by Ft.Mill Bobcat on Mar 21, 2010 12:23 PM EDT up reply actions
what if the ROF shirt said:
“Game-Threads so long, Greg Oden would be proud”
--(insert quote, lyric, or joke here)
Am I the only one who is fine with this?
Maybe it’s crazy, but I’d like the ’Cats to slide into the 8th spot and match up with Cleveland.
by Spider Jerusalem on Mar 21, 2010 8:48 PM EDT reply actions
I would like the Cats to have some momentum going into the playoffs
I am okay with Charlotte getting the 8th seed as long as the team continues to win. Backing into the playoffs isn’t a good look.
"I could never be a thug, they don't dress this well." - Malice
by Julius Coxswain on Mar 21, 2010 9:26 PM EDT up reply actions
new shirt
Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is.
by WhatAboutBob_cats on Mar 22, 2010 12:05 AM EDT reply actions
Haha this is great. I think David has already order one for every day of the week.
Blogging at Ridiculous Upside, where my terrible writing meets people's eyes.
another
Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is.
by WhatAboutBob_cats on Mar 22, 2010 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions
i like this
did this dude just did this
by OldschoolBlue on Mar 22, 2010 7:26 PM EDT up reply actions
no matter how i look at it.
this was the worst game i’ve ever watched. on both sides of the ball. miami…was terrible. we….were worse.
"Smokey this isn't 'Nam this is bowling. There are rules!"
i was so damn close
to breaking my remote over this game. we have every chance to go up HUGE in this game. ugh. I don’t wanna talk about it. My blood pressure is about to go through the roof. Everybody root for UNI in the NCAA tourney. They’re only an hour from where i grew up. Wish it was my Hawkeyes, but we fired our coach this year if that’s any indication about how we finished(we’re a football and wrestling school).
"Smokey this isn't 'Nam this is bowling. There are rules!"
by HAWKEYESBABY on Mar 22, 2010 9:22 PM EDT up reply actions
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
Related FanPosts on Rufus on Fire
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
