Pacers rusty but still beat Heat
Published 12:00 am Friday, May 7, 2004
INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Pacers showed plenty of rust from an 11-day layoff. They still had more than enough to beat the weary Miami Heat.
The Pacers bounced back from a sluggish start with a 26-5 run spanning the end of the second and start of the third quarters that propelled them to a 94-81 victory Thursday night in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.
Ron Artest had 25 points and six rebounds for the Pacers, who hadn't played since wrapping up their first-round sweep of Boston way back on April 25.
The long break showed early, with the Pacers committing 10 turnovers in the first half and struggling to execute their offense for much of the game.
Just two days removed from finishing a grueling seven-game series against New Orleans, the Heat didn't have the energy to capitalize.
Miami shot just 38 percent from the field, missing countless layups and coming up short on jumpers, a sign of fatigue.
Game 2 is Saturday in Indianapolis.
Rookie Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 22 points and seven rebounds. Caron Butler added 14 points and nine rebounds for Miami, which got the fast start it wanted before Jamaal Tinsley buried them with hot shooting from the outside.
Miami took a 7-2 lead in the first two minutes as Indiana opened the game cold from the field. Several of the Heat players were breathing heavy after the quick start and Indiana slowly started to wear down the younger team.