Defending champions Miami and perennial powerhouse San Antonio asserted their claims to the NBA title with authoritative wins on Tuesday in the opening games of their NBA second-round playoff series.
Miami were too good for their bogey team Brooklyn, beating the Nets 107-86, while San Antonio led from start to finish in beating Portland 116-92.
LeBron James scored 22 points and Ray Allen added 19 to keep the Heat undefeated this post-season.
Photo: AFP
Brooklyn had beat Miami narrowly in all four of their previous meetings this season.
Chris Bosh scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Dwyane Wade had 14 points and Mario Chalmers added 12 for Miami, who recorded at least one regular-season win against every team except Brooklyn, who they lost against four times by a total of 12 points.
Deron Williams and Joe Johnson scored 17 points each for the Nets, who got only eight from Paul Pierce and none from Kevin Garnett.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is scheduled for tonight.
A 24-9 run in the third quarter blew things open for the Heat, who had not played in eight days after sweeping Charlotte in the opening round. James finished 10-for-15 from the field and Allen — who had never faced his former Boston “Big 3” compatriots Pierce and Garnett in the playoffs — was four-of-seven in three-pointers.
In the day’s other playoff clash, San Antonio’s Tony Parker had 33 points and nine assists as the Spurs bullied Portland and won 116-92.
Kawhi Leonard had 16 points, while Tim Duncan added 12 points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio.
More importantly for the Spurs, their bench contributed mightily after being virtually nonexistent in the series against Dallas.
Marco Belinelli had 19 points, while the Australian connection of Aron Baynes and Patty Mills had 10 points apiece.
The Spurs had their most complete game of the post-season, playing with the flair and fluidity that gave them the NBA’s best regular-season record.
Meanwhile, Portland did not come close to resembling the confident, sharpshooting group who upset Houston in the opening round.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 32 points and 14 rebounds, and Damian Lillard had 17 points for Portland, but the All-Star duo combined for just 17 points in the first half as San Antonio built a 26-point lead.
Duncan left the game with four minutes to go in the first quarter after picking up two quick fouls, but the Spurs increased their lead in his absence thanks to big contributions from the bench.
Baynes had an immediate impact, scoring four points quickly and sustaining the physical defense against Aldridge that Splitter established.
Belinelli finished three-for-five from three-point range, leading the Spurs’ bench to leap to their feet in celebration. After going just four-for-seven on three-pointers against Dallas, Belinelli hit his first three attempts from long range.
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