Trans. Mar 20 8:16 ET (Mar 20 8:16 ET ) Heading into Wednesday night's road contest against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat looked primed to extend their winning streak to 24 games and push closer to the 1971-72 Lakers' all-time record of 33 in a row. The Cavs entered the game in a rough spot, having lost three in a row and seven of their previous nine games. In addition, they were forced to play without All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and dangerous rookie scorer Dion Waiters (plus the long-absent Anderson Varejao), two players with the potential to match Miami's firepower.
In the end, the Heat won a close game, 98-95 . But the score doesn't reflect the intensity of one of the wildest games of the NBA regular season. It's notable any time LeBron James returns to the city he left in the summer of 2010, but this game upped the ante.
After a bizarre delay involving carbon dioxide leaking from the scoreboard , the Heat overwhelmed the Cavaliers to take a stunning 55-34 halftime lead. The Heat looked unprepared and unable to contend with a more energetic and inspired team, scoring just 10 points in the second quarter and seemingly assured of having their streak etched in the record books as the second-longest in NBA history. At the same time, the Cavaliers played well above expectations, getting terrific performances from their backcourt of Shaun Livingston and Wayne Ellington and second-year forward Tristan Thompson. At the 7:43 mark of the third quarter, Cavs center Tyler Zeller completed a three-point play to push the lead to 67-40. It looked like the Heat could be content surrendering and sitting their stars in the fourth quarter.
And then we were all made witness to the awesome power of the 2012-13 Miami Heat. After the jump, get the full rundown of how they managed to extend the streak, complete with video highlights.
Heading into Wednesday night's road contest against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat looked primed to extend their winning streak to 24 games and push closer to the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers' all-time record of 33 in a row. The Cavs entered the game in a rough spot, having lost three in a row and seven of their previous nine games. In addition, they were forced to play without All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and dangerous rookie scorer Dion Waiters (plus the long-absent Anderson Varejao), two players with the potential to match Miami's firepower.
[Related: A fan runs onto the court in Cleveland and approaches LeBron James ]
In the end, the Heat won a close game, 98-95 . But the score doesn't reflect the intensity of one of the wildest games of the NBA regular season. It's notable any time LeBron James returns to the city he left in the summer of 2010, but this game upped the ante.
After a bizarre delay involving carbon dioxide leaking from the scoreboard , the Cavaliers overwhelmed the Heat to take a stunning 55-34 halftime lead. Miami looked unprepared and unable to contend with a more energetic and inspired team, scoring just 10 points in the second quarter and seemingly assured of having their streak ended at 23 games and etched in the record books as the second-longest in NBA history. At the same time, the Cavaliers played well above expectations, getting terrific performances from second-year forward Tristan Thompson and the backcourt of Shaun Livingston and Wayne Ellington. At the 7:43 mark of the third quarter, Cavs center Tyler Zeller completed a three-point play to push the lead to 67-40. It looked like the Heat could be content surrendering and sitting their stars in the fourth quarter.
And then we were all made witness to the awesome power of the 2012-13 Miami Heat. After the jump, get the full rundown of how they managed to extend the streak, complete with video highlights.
MIAMI, Fla. – Welcome to today's episode of Heat Said, Weezy said.
During Sunday's Miami Heat win over the L.A. Lakers, rapper Lil Wayne tweeted that he was ejected from American Airlines Arena for cheering for the visiting team.
"So I'm @ da Heat game right, rootin 4 da Lakers kuz dats my team & would u believe they got police 2 make me leave?! Wow!" the rapper tweeted.
He then added an epithet: "[Expletive] da Heat."
[ Related: While Lakers soap opera thickens, Heat just keep winning ]
That caused quite a reaction on Twitter, as Lil Wayne has nearly 10 million followers. Yet he's not the only one out there with an account of what happened Sunday. A fan named Danny Vega, who said he was near the rapper, had a different version of the incident:
"Random guy yelled at Lil Wayne at #MiamiHEAT game, Weezy looked back, gave him a mean stare & gestured he had a gun," tweeted Vega, who said he was at the game and sitting near Lil Wayne. "Weezy just got into argument with security at the #MiamiHEAT game. He got kicked out for gun gesture."
Heat spokeswoman Lorrie-Ann Diaz told USA Today in an e-mail that Lil Wayne was not kicked out but instead chose to leave.
NBA fans and fans of Lil Wayne will recall a similar disagreement during last year's Western Conference Finals, as the rapper claimed he wasn't allowed entry into Oklahoma City's Chesapeake Energy Arena. A spokesman for the Thunder later said Lil Wayne wasn't allowed into the building because he didn't have a ticket.
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(Reuters) - Cleveland Cavaliers forward Anderson Varejao will miss the rest of the National Basketball Association (NBA) season undergoing treatment for a blood clot in his right lung, the team said on Monday. The 30-year-old Brazilian, who was the NBA's top rebounder until a knee injury requiring surgery sidelined him in December, was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic last Thursday where he is being treated with blood thinners. He will need to remain on blood thinning medication for approximately three months but is expected to make a full recovery, according to the Cavaliers. ...
Jan 21 (Reuters) - Cleveland Cavaliers forward Anderson Varejao will miss the rest of the National Basketball Association (NBA) season undergoing treatment for a blood clot in his right lung, the team said on Monday. The 30-year-old Brazilian, who was the NBA's top rebounder until a knee injury requiring surgery sidelined him in December, was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic last Thursday where he is being treated with blood thinners. He will need to remain on blood thinning medication for approximately three months but is expected to make a full recovery, according to the Cavaliers. ...
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao had surgery to repair a split leg muscle, an injury that could sideline him two more months.
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