Last night's game in Miami was an intense affair, as both teams put aside the normal flair with which they play and settled down for a 48 minute playoff-style battle. The play was sloppy but intense, big shots were made, hard fouls were given, and unfortunately the Heat came out on top this time around.
A lot of times it is unfair to say that a game can be condensed to the best player on each team, but that is essentially what last night was all about. To be sure, other stars such as Russell Westbrook and Dwyane Wade played a role, but the game was about Kevin Durant and LeBron James. Durant had gotten the best of LeBron a week ago, but last night was James' chance to even the score. When the chips were down and the game was on the line, LeBron made more key plays than Durant did. He had an amazing block against Westbrook on the fast break late in the game, followed that up with a coast-to-coast layup to give his team a 3-point cushion, and then later he forced Durant into a missed shot, a shot which represented the Thunder's last shot at taking the game.
Bonus clip below: I alluded to it above, but I really think this was the deciding sequence of the game. The Thunder had just gotten a huge stop and Westbrook was out on the break. He absolutely had to find a way to produce points either with a made shot or get to the line, and James did a fantastic job both avoiding the contact and then reaching back to get a piece of the shot. James then responded with a bucket at the other end.
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