Associated Press
The NBA playoff roundup …
MIAMI ó With the outcome decided in the final seconds, LeBron James walked toward Mario Chalmers to begin his version of a celebration.
He playfully punched his teammate twice in the chest.
Fitting, because James and the Miami Heat have now landed two blows against the Boston Celtics.
James scored 24 of his 35 points in the second half, Dwyane Wade added 28 and the Heat used a late 14-0 run to pull away and beat the aching Celtics 102-91 in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Tuesday night.
ěFeel good about it,î James said. ěSeries is far ó far, far, far ó away from over. Itís really just beginning for us.î
James shot 14 of 25 from the field, and logged 44 minutes with no turnovers. Chris Bosh finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds for Miami, which leads the best-of-seven 2-0.
Game 3 in Boston isnít until Saturday night, and the Celtics may be particularly thankful for the break.
Rajon Rondo played through a balky back to score 20 points and add 12 assists for Boston, which got 16 points from Kevin Garnett and 13 from Paul Pierce ó who retreated to the locker room for treatment on his strained left Achillesí in the first half. Ray Allen was held to seven points, and left with what he said was a bruised chest cavity courtesy of an elbow from James in the third quarter.
Mavericks 96, Lakers 94
LOS ANGELES ó Dirk Nowitzki scored 28 points and hit two go-ahead free throws with 19.5 seconds left and Dallas rallied for a 96-94 victory over Los Angeles on Monday night in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.
Nowitzki had 14 rebounds for the Mavericks, who rallied from a 16-point deficit in the second half of the teamsí first postseason meeting in 23 years.
Bryant scored 21 of his 36 points in the second half for the Lakers, but he fell down while trying to get the ball from Pau Gasol with 5 seconds to play. After one free throw by Jason Kidd, Bryant missed a 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
Game 2 is Wednesday night at Staples Center.
Gasol had 15 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the second-seeded Lakers, who lost their second straight series opener.
The Mavericks trailed 92-87 with 3:32 to play, but finished on a 9-2 run.
Hawks 103, Bulls 95
CHICAGO ó Joe Johnson scored 34 points and Atlanta beat top-seeded Chicago in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Bulls got a scare when Derrick Rose came up limping at the end of the game. He stepped on Jamal Crawfordís foot as he dribbled out the final seconds and was helped off by teammates and a trainer.
The Hawks went on a 15-2 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters to take an 80-71 lead with 10:27 remaining. Johnson scored eight points during that stretch.
Game 2 is Wednesday night at the United Center.
Johnson hit 12 of 18 shots and all five 3-point attempts. Crawford scored 22 points for the Hawks, who shot 51.3 percent.
Rose scored 24 points on 11-of-27 shooting. Luol Deng scored 21 points for Chicago.
The Associated Press
05/03/11 01:34