Despite Hobbled O’Neal, Heat Sweep Nets Out of Playoffs

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Until Shaquille O’Neal’s sore thighs get better, Dwyane Wade is quite capable of leading the Miami Heat past anyone in the playoffs, even sweeping them.Wade more than filled the void of O’Neal’s scoreless first half by scoring a career playoff-high 34 points and setting up the big guy for most of his 17 second half points as the Heat completed a first-round sweep of the Nets with a 110-97 win yesterday.Wade put up spectacular numbers with O’Neal hobbled, averaging 26.3 points, 8.8 assists, 6.3 rebounds, 1.8 steals, a block and 42.5 minutes.His big game in Miami’s seventh straight win over Jason Kidd and company guaranteed that O’Neal will have at least a full week to rest his legs before the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs resumes.“He’s been a superstar, even last year,” O’Neal said of Wade. “It’s just now you guys are recognizing it.”The Heat cruised past the Nets because they hit shots and they also got contributions from the likes of Eddie Jones, Damon Jones, Udonis Haslem, Keyon Dooling, and Alonzo Mourning, the former Net who was booed unmercifully the past two games.“Everybody stepped up, some nights guys you didn’t expect to play well, played well,” said O’Neal, who averaged 18.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 33 minutes. “The whole team played well. We had six or eight guys play well.”And the Heat will be a lot better when O’Neal is healthy.Eddie Jones added 21 points yesterday and O’Neal shot 7-for-9 in the second half after missing all five in the first half. Miami shot 54.9% from the field with Wade leading the way, making 13-of-20.New Jersey, which qualified for the playoffs on the final day of the regular season by winning for the 15th time in 19 games, was eliminated early because it shot poorly the entire series. Game 4 was another lowlight, a 39.5% effort that included a woeful 6-of-22 effort by Vince Carter.“It says a lot when you beat a team four straight times,” Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. “Normally, there is a letdown. Those guys kept on coming. Our guys made a big run. Once we got it up three, they took it to another level.”Kidd, who struggled most of the series, had his best game, scoring 25 points on 9-for-19 shooting. Carter added 23 points and Richard Jefferson and Nenad Krstic had 17 apiece.After making the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003, the Nets have been eliminated in the second round last year and, now, the first round.“It wasn’t so long ago we set the bar in the Eastern Conference,” Frank said. “Tables turn quickly.”Trailing 60-57 midway through the third quarter, Miami took control with a 21-10 spurt that was all Wade. He hit a jumper to get the Heat within two points, he fed O’Neal for a layup and then found Damon Jones for an open 3-pointer and a 64-60 lead.Eddie Jones took over late in the quarter, hitting two 3-pointers and a jumper for a 78-70 lead after three quarters.The Nets made a run early in the fourth quarter, drawing within 84-81 on a 3-pointer by Kidd. But Dooling, who had 11 points, hit a 3-pointer and Wade embarrassed Carter on an out-of-bounds play, bouncing the ball off his rear end and hitting a layup for an 89-81 edge.New Jersey never got close again and the only cheers from the home crowd came when Frank emptied the bench in the closing minutes.Wade appeared to be the only member of the Heat who wanted to end the series right away. He hit 6-of-8 shots and scored 14 points in the first quarter in helping Miami take a 27-16 lead.O’Neal, who started the series with a sore right thigh and hurt his left in Miami’s double overtime win in Game 3, shot 0-for-5 with three turnovers in the first half. The only thing he hit was a couple of Nets’ jaws in picking up two offensive fouls, and three overall.

Despite Hobbled O’Neal, Heat Sweep Nets Out of Playoffs

Despite Hobbled O’Neal, Heat Sweep Nets Out of Playoffs

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