first contact came when Freeman hammered a 1-2 | Forum
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Jan 12 '19
MIAMI -- By now, Lance Stephensons list of egregious acts from Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals are well-known: He blew air into LeBron James ear, interrupted a Miami Heat huddle and got caught flopping for the second time. Air Max 270 Sale UK . And on Thursday, the Heat tried to get their focus back on themselves. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra almost never holds a practice the day after a road game, especially when the team plane lands around 3:30 a.m. as was the case in the wee hours of Thursday. But Spoelstra deviated from the norm on the day before Game 6 of this East title series, not for any one on-court issue but rather so the two-time defending NBA champions could relieve some frustration. "Clear heads ... and to connect," Spoelstra said. "We didnt want to leave it all to tomorrow. There were some things we wanted to go over, and for times sake, splitting it up was a little bit more efficient." The Heat still lead the series 3-2, and get the chance to close the Pacers out for the third straight year on Friday night. The game is in Miami, where the Heat have won their last 10 playoff contests. Predictably, the talk on the off day wasnt so much about Paul George scoring 37 points to lead his team to a season-saving win, or even how James was held to seven points on a night that he was rendered silent for long stretches because of foul trouble. Instead, the buzz was almost entirely about Stephenson, who has simultaneously become a Heat frustration and Internet sensation. Images of his already-infamous ear-blowing stunt were widely distributed on social media moments after it occurred in Game 5, and he didnt back down Thursday when asked about his desire to pester the Heat. "Just playing ball, man, having fun and enjoying the moment," Stephenson said. Spoelstra didnt react when Stephenson -- who said James was showing signs of "weakness" earlier in the series -- crashed the Heat huddle. Much like his players, Spoelstra didnt bite when asked about the excitable Pacer guards attempts to throw Miami off its game. "Very bizarre game," Heat guard Dwyane Wade said. "Weird game. But its over." Indiana coach Frank Vogel didnt seem to mind the huddle move, though suggested the ear-blowing decision was a bit much. "People are in my huddle all the time. Every player in the NBA does that. Thats nothing," Vogel said. "Blowing in his face probably crosses the line. Thats not really who we are. We want to be a competitive team, but we dont want to cross the line." Stephenson and Pacers centre Roy Hibbert flew to Miami with slightly lighter wallets; Stephenson was fined $10,000 by the NBA on Thursday for his second flop of the series, Hibbert $5,000 for another flopping violation. It marked the second time in as many games that a Pacer has drawn a fine, with George having gotten dinged for $25,000 after blasting the officiating following Indianas loss in Game 4. In Georges case, the money might have seemed well-spent. Indiana took 22 free throws in Game 5 to Miamis eight, a total that matched the fewest any team has shot in a playoff game since 2006. "We just didnt get to the free-throw line," James said. "We were aggressive ... we shot the ball extremely well. We just didnt get to the line." Almost everything went wrong for Miami in Game 5, and the Heat still nearly won. James shot just 2 for 10 in 24 minutes, and got his fifth foul with 8 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter, with the Heat leading by eight. Miami went scoreless on nine of its first 12 possessions after James checked out and the Pacers used that stretch to build a five-point lead, the margin eventually reaching seven when George connected on a 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer. Down by as many as 11 in the fourth, Miami had a chance to take the lead in the final seconds, but Chris Boshs 3-pointer bounced away. And with that, the Heat started the process of turning the page to Friday night, when they could punch their fourth straight ticket to the NBA Finals. "Its Game 6," Bosh said. "Its our Game 7." Air Max 270 Clearance Sale . Seriously. Seven years of losing has brought many different faces, players and management, to the annual pre-season get-to-know-the-team round up. Air Max 270 Wholesale UK .What they got was a bevy of players chipping in to pick up the slack.Josh Smith scored 18 points and James Harden added 17 as the Rockets used a balanced scoring effort to outlast the Mavericks for a 99-94 victory. ST. LOUIS -- Long counts have kept Shelby Miller from pitching too deep into games the last few months. On Saturday, though, the rookie was happy to give the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen a bit of a break. Miller worked seven innings of three-hit ball and Matt Carpenter and Carlos Beltran each homered as the Cardinals beat the Atlanta Braves for the third straight time, 6-2. "I thought thats probably about as good as weve seen him in a long time," manager Mike Matheny said. "His stuff was electric and he was in the lower part of the zone. "He was really locked in, hopefully thats something he can maintain," Matheny said. Freddie Freeman homered for the NL East-leading Braves, who totalled five runs while dropping three in a row for the first time since July 3-5. Julio Teheran (10-7) allowed a season-worst five walks and was charged with four runs. "I didnt have my best stuff but I was fighting the whole game," Teheran said. "I knew it from the first inning, from when I was warming up that it was going to be a hard day for me." Miller (12-8) worked more than six innings for the first time in 13 starts since June 1. He struck out six without walking a batter while pitching with no more than a one-run cushion against a fellow 22-year-old right-hander. Center fielder Jon Jay made a leaping catch at the wall to rob Brian McCann of at least extra bases in the seventh. "My main goal was to keep my focus the entire game and just attack the zone," Miller said. "Thats kind of what Ive been lacking a little bit. "I felt like we got in front on the counts and after that we didnt slow down," he added. The Cardinals, who began the night a game back in the NL Central, go for a four-game sweep Sunday with Lance Lynn (13-7) opposing Mike Minor (12-5). "Theyre as good a ballclub as youre going to face in the National League," Carpenter said. "For us to take these three games is huge." St. Louis totalled three runs while getting swept in a three-game series in Atlanta in late July. "Its a combination of tough pitching and were not swinging it really well," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "Sometimes you run into a hot team like they are right now. Cheap Air Max 270 Wholesale. They ran into us at our place, we were pretty hot." Pinch-hitter Shane Robinson and Carpenter opened a three-run seventh with singles to chase Teheran and the Cardinals broke it open against reliever Dave Carpenter with a two-run double by Matt Holliday and an RBI single by Yadier Molina for a 5-1 lead The Braves had three of their seven hits in the ninth, including pinch-hitter Gerald Lairds RBI double off Seth Maness before Edward Mujica struck out Elliott Johnson with two on for his 34th save in 36 chances. The first three hits of the game were home runs. Miller struck out the first two batters on seven pitches and the Braves first contact came when Freeman hammered a 1-2 pitch for his 16th homer. Carpenter answered with his second career leadoff homer and 10th overall, also on a 1-2 count, in the bottom of the first. Beltrans team-leading 23rd put the Cardinals ahead 2-1 in the third and he finished with three hits, two RBIs and his second base-running gaffe of the series. Beltran settled for a single in the fifth after standing at the plate for several seconds and belatedly jogging to first on a liner down the third base line that caromed off the jut in the stands in shallow left. Two days earlier he missed third base and had to double back before scoring. "I got jammed and I didnt know where the ball went," Beltran said. "I heard the fans just clapping and I didnt know what happened, then I saw the ball in left field and said Ive got to run. Wouldnt it be ugly to be thrown out at first base from left field?" NOTES: Miller walked nine in 16 1-3 innings his first four starts this month, one of them lasting just two pitches when he took a liner off the elbow. Missouri DE Kony Ealy threw a ceremonial first pitch. ... The Cardinals have hit 21 homers in August after totalling nine in July, although Carpenters 10th overall was his first since July 10 against Houston. ... The Braves are 8-31 when scoring two or fewer runs. ... Mujica, who missed the previous two games with back and neck woes, said he probably would be ready to go Sunday. ... Freeman is batting .433 (13 for 30) his last seven games. Wholesale China Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Authentic Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Nike Basketball Jerseys Hockey Jerseys China Supply Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Sale Authentic College Jerseys MLB Jerseys China Stitched Soccer Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap Nike Jerseys ' ' '
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