Monday, January 03, 2005
GAME 29: SUPERSONICS 98, HEAT 96
Some notes here, some notes there...postgame thoughts are at the bottom as usual.
Note: I was away from the TV and the computer for the third quarter and most of the fourth quarter, though the car radio was close by. That's why those sections of the notes are quite incomplete.
[final content posted ~8:40p]
1st qtr
Shaq top of key fouled by James 16 seconds in, Shaq bricks both. Ray Allen baseline reverse is first basket of game. James' second foul at 10:06, but Shaq hits both this time. James' third foul at 9:25, Shaq hits free throw on and-one. Fortson first foul on Shaq at 8:50, Shaq hits first, bricks second, but Heat get rebound. Allen three left side 7:57 gets Sonics to down 8-7. Shaq hits both at 7:33. Fortson gets the basket and one at 7:00, nice play...one step and up ties the game at 10-10. 6:08 Lewis lays in on about the third or fourth chance, lots of offensive rebounds. Fortson draws a charge from Shaq at 5:51. 5:17 Allen baseline layup reverse scoop 14-12 Sonics. 4:05 Allen three dead center 17-14 SEA. 2:46 Wade works Allen 19-16 SEA. 2:20 Doleac left side 19-18 SEA, no hand in his face. 21-18 Fortson third chance. Antonio Daniels loses grip on ball, fires crazy shot that doesn't beat buzzer, but falls from just inside halfcourt left side.
Sonics up 21-20 after one quarter.
The pace really picked up after Shaq left the game. Yes, it's true -- if you're busy fouling Shaq, the game slows down, and if he hits the second free throws, you're probably not going to get too many fast breaks from those. The Heat shot 10-of-14 from the free-throw line in the first quarter. The Sonics? They were 100% from the line...on Danny Fortson's free throw completing his three-point play. That was their only free throw of the quarter.
2nd qtr
9:53 Allen off-balance three left MIA 26-25. 7:41 Ridnour hits baskets on two straight possessions 31-28 SEA. 6:32 Lewis three from left corner 34-30 SEA. 4:55 Vlad hook top of key over Damon Jones 36-31 SEA...mismatch. 3:29 Shaq bites on Ridnour driving to the basket, nice pass to Fortson for easy layin 40-35 SEA. 2:10 Lewis foul and one on Laettner SEA 43-37. About 49 seconds, Wade basket interference on Lewis; he grabbed the net on his way up. ... 31.5 Allen drives through lane lays up left side 49-41 SEA.
Half (the stats are from here)
Sonics up 49-43. Hell, I just wanted the Sonics to stay close after one half, but a lead of six is a big bonus. Ray Allen is leading the Sonics in scoring at half (16), but Rashard Lewis has a double-double in the first half alone, with 12 and 10. I think one of the keys was when Fortson came into the game. Unlike James, Fortson (8 points, 7 boards) seems to be able to effectively defend Shaq without fouling him left and right. The game wasn't even three minutes old and James had three fouls on him. Luke Ridnour has chipped in with a few really nice shots, good for 6 points. He's also got 4 assists. In other news, the Sonics have held Dwyane Wade to 2-for-7 shooting. The Sonics are blasting the Heat on the boards 27-15. Ten of the Sonics' rebounds are on the offensive glass.
3rd qtr
Sorry, y'all. I was gone, so no huge long, drawn-out observations here. But I can tell you that the game log clarifies something I noticed...it took 1:53 for the first basket to be scored after halftime. Ray Allen scored the last seven points of the quarter, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer.
4th qtr
3:57 Allen three to get to 90-87 SEA, breaks tie. 2:11 Daniels go-ahead three right corner 93-90 pass from Lewis down low. Allen two free throws at 0:46 for 95-93 SEA on Shaq foul driving through lane. MISSED CALL Miami lane violation on Fortson's second free throw with 13 secs left (96-95 SEA). Wade kicks into corner for three, rims, Laettner misses shot left side...GREAT defense, Vlad fouled and hits BOTH free throws 98-95 Sonics. Miami final possession (SEA 98-95) Eddie Jones foul called BULL#$(# on Lewis in three-point land (little if any contact)...JONES MISSES THE FIRST ONE; Jones hits second, MISSES RIM ON THIRD SHOT.
---
The Sonics were ahead for a decent portion of the game (the Heat only led for 6 minutes, now that I see the wire story) and held Dwyane Wade at bay in the first half, but he caught fire in the second half (23 of his 28 points), the Heat pulled close, and the lead changed hands many times as a result. The second-to-last Miami possession saw the Sonics playing some GREAT defense, forcing Wade to kick out for a three, and that rimmed off to Christian Laettner, who missed an easy shot from the left side. I thought the call on the final Heat possession (the Lewis three-point foul on Eddie Jones) was total crap. I thought Jones just faked Lewis out of his shorts, but I didn't see any contact at all. Still, those three free throws could have tied the game with 0:00.4 left. But Eddie Jones missed the first one. He nailed the second one, but the Heat needed a brick and a tip-in. Jones didn't get the rim with the third free throw, the Sonics got to inbound the ball, and that was it.
The Sonics just snapped Miami's 14-game winning streak. Incredible.
Monster nights from Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, but a MONSTER night off the bench for Danny Fortson...
PEEK AT THE BOXSCORE
starters
Ray Allen 35 pts/2 reb (12-25 FG, 6-10 3pt, 5-5 free throws), Rashard Lewis 17 pts/13 reb/2 ast/3 stl (7-20 FG), Luke Ridnour 10 pts/7 ast/2 reb (5-11 FG), Reggie Evans 2 pts/8 reb (14 min)
bench
Danny Fortson 15 pts/10 reb (4-8 FG, 7-9 free throws, 33 mins), Vlad Radmanovic 12 pts/6 reb (4-9 FG, 4-6 free throws, 31 min), Antonio Daniels 7 pts/3 reb/3 ast (3-5 FG, 26 min), Nick Collison 0 pts/2 reb (5 fouls, 6 minutes)
Jerome James Watch
0 pts/0 reb/1 stl/1 blk (5 fouls, 9 min)
team
shot 41.4% from the field (36-for-87), shot 9-for-20 from downtown (45%), shot 81% from free-throw line (17-21), outrebounded Miami 46-36 (16 offensive boards for Seattle), bench outscored Miami's bench 34-14, bench outrebounded Miami's bench 21-6
I can quickly explain the limited minutes for Jerome James, Reggie Evans, and Nick Collison. Danny Fortson was the only answer to Shaq down low on the defensive end tonight, and he amazingly wasn't piling up fouls at the pace to which we're accustomed; James and Collison were doing that instead (unfortunately for Collison, this breaks his five-game streak of really good contributions). Fortson got about 10 more minutes tonight than he usually does, for goodness' sake. Thank goodness he wasn't piling up fouls because his free-throw shooting is immensely important (though he did rim the one shot with 13 ticks left, which got the Sonics a one-point lead instead of two...it could have cost them). Still, it's a double-double off the bench. Amazing.
You should have seen Jerome James jump across the lane as that first free throw by Eddie Jones bounced hard off the base of the rim. There was some glee, definitely.
As for Rashard Lewis, his shot might have been a bit off, but he more than made up for it with the boards. I don't expect a double-double every night from him (though it'd be nice), but it was nice to see him get a ton of boards when Jerome James and Nick Collison weren't getting any.
It was Lewis' partner in crime that had the monster scoring night, as Ray Allen notched 32. What amazes me is all the shots he hits while he's drifting or floating sideways through the air. He rolls off a pick, the defender is just a split second late, and Allen (possibly falling sideways at this point) hoists up the shot. In a related note, the one shot I used to be able to hit in PE was what I thought was a Hakeem Olajuwon shot. You know, the one where he'd dribble from one side of the free throw line to the other? He'd dribble low and then sort of put up a half-hook? Okay, I'm probably wrong about everything here. I'm probably messing up the description of the shot, and I think I only actually hit it maybe four times total. What David Wells once said applied to me in high school: "I'm not an athlete, lady. I'm a baseball player."
Hey, Luke Ridnour got into double figures again. His shot is coming back, and a couple of his baskets were really nice driving layups, and he shot a couple of those floaters as well. They're pretty. I remember one time Kevin Calabro likened some of Luke's high-arcing shots to vintage Bob Cousy, where you'd see a basketball rise up over a sea of arms and find its way into the basket.
Well, at this point I have no idea where I'm going with this post and how I'm going to end it, so like the end of the episode of South Park where the kids get jacked up on cough syrup, I'm just gonna bail.
HUGE win, though. It took a couple of Miami mistakes to seal this one for the Sonics, but they pulled it off. You need some bounces every once in a while. I still thought that foul on Lewis on the last Miami play of the game was crap, though. I need to look at the replay closer, but even if it shows contact, I'm still going to say it's bull.
It really was a great game. Of course, televising it nationally would have meant running it up against the Sugar Bowl, but as Jeremy pointed out to me last night, there's no way the NBA scheduling crew could have predicted before the season that Sonics/Heat being a battle of titans. Anyway, I hope everyone that saw it enjoyed it. I wouldn't believe anyone that said they didn't. I was fully prepared to say this was a great game even if the Sonics lost.
Okay, so I didn't bail. I guess it's a natural tendency for me to eventually be able to close a post.
[Edit ~9:43p -- Part of my piece after the first quarter had part of the fourth-quarter notes attached to them. So in retrospect, I could nail Fortson for missing that free throw, but there was a blatant Miami lane violation on the free throw, and Fortson should have gotten another shot.]
[Edit ~9:51p -- It turns out the correct spelling is indeed "arcing" rather than "arcking." I thought the same rule applied as when you change "traffic" to "trafficking." That's not the case.]
Note: I was away from the TV and the computer for the third quarter and most of the fourth quarter, though the car radio was close by. That's why those sections of the notes are quite incomplete.
[final content posted ~8:40p]
1st qtr
Shaq top of key fouled by James 16 seconds in, Shaq bricks both. Ray Allen baseline reverse is first basket of game. James' second foul at 10:06, but Shaq hits both this time. James' third foul at 9:25, Shaq hits free throw on and-one. Fortson first foul on Shaq at 8:50, Shaq hits first, bricks second, but Heat get rebound. Allen three left side 7:57 gets Sonics to down 8-7. Shaq hits both at 7:33. Fortson gets the basket and one at 7:00, nice play...one step and up ties the game at 10-10. 6:08 Lewis lays in on about the third or fourth chance, lots of offensive rebounds. Fortson draws a charge from Shaq at 5:51. 5:17 Allen baseline layup reverse scoop 14-12 Sonics. 4:05 Allen three dead center 17-14 SEA. 2:46 Wade works Allen 19-16 SEA. 2:20 Doleac left side 19-18 SEA, no hand in his face. 21-18 Fortson third chance. Antonio Daniels loses grip on ball, fires crazy shot that doesn't beat buzzer, but falls from just inside halfcourt left side.
Sonics up 21-20 after one quarter.
The pace really picked up after Shaq left the game. Yes, it's true -- if you're busy fouling Shaq, the game slows down, and if he hits the second free throws, you're probably not going to get too many fast breaks from those. The Heat shot 10-of-14 from the free-throw line in the first quarter. The Sonics? They were 100% from the line...on Danny Fortson's free throw completing his three-point play. That was their only free throw of the quarter.
2nd qtr
9:53 Allen off-balance three left MIA 26-25. 7:41 Ridnour hits baskets on two straight possessions 31-28 SEA. 6:32 Lewis three from left corner 34-30 SEA. 4:55 Vlad hook top of key over Damon Jones 36-31 SEA...mismatch. 3:29 Shaq bites on Ridnour driving to the basket, nice pass to Fortson for easy layin 40-35 SEA. 2:10 Lewis foul and one on Laettner SEA 43-37. About 49 seconds, Wade basket interference on Lewis; he grabbed the net on his way up. ... 31.5 Allen drives through lane lays up left side 49-41 SEA.
Half (the stats are from here)
Sonics up 49-43. Hell, I just wanted the Sonics to stay close after one half, but a lead of six is a big bonus. Ray Allen is leading the Sonics in scoring at half (16), but Rashard Lewis has a double-double in the first half alone, with 12 and 10. I think one of the keys was when Fortson came into the game. Unlike James, Fortson (8 points, 7 boards) seems to be able to effectively defend Shaq without fouling him left and right. The game wasn't even three minutes old and James had three fouls on him. Luke Ridnour has chipped in with a few really nice shots, good for 6 points. He's also got 4 assists. In other news, the Sonics have held Dwyane Wade to 2-for-7 shooting. The Sonics are blasting the Heat on the boards 27-15. Ten of the Sonics' rebounds are on the offensive glass.
3rd qtr
Sorry, y'all. I was gone, so no huge long, drawn-out observations here. But I can tell you that the game log clarifies something I noticed...it took 1:53 for the first basket to be scored after halftime. Ray Allen scored the last seven points of the quarter, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer.
4th qtr
3:57 Allen three to get to 90-87 SEA, breaks tie. 2:11 Daniels go-ahead three right corner 93-90 pass from Lewis down low. Allen two free throws at 0:46 for 95-93 SEA on Shaq foul driving through lane. MISSED CALL Miami lane violation on Fortson's second free throw with 13 secs left (96-95 SEA). Wade kicks into corner for three, rims, Laettner misses shot left side...GREAT defense, Vlad fouled and hits BOTH free throws 98-95 Sonics. Miami final possession (SEA 98-95) Eddie Jones foul called BULL#$(# on Lewis in three-point land (little if any contact)...JONES MISSES THE FIRST ONE; Jones hits second, MISSES RIM ON THIRD SHOT.
---
The Sonics were ahead for a decent portion of the game (the Heat only led for 6 minutes, now that I see the wire story) and held Dwyane Wade at bay in the first half, but he caught fire in the second half (23 of his 28 points), the Heat pulled close, and the lead changed hands many times as a result. The second-to-last Miami possession saw the Sonics playing some GREAT defense, forcing Wade to kick out for a three, and that rimmed off to Christian Laettner, who missed an easy shot from the left side. I thought the call on the final Heat possession (the Lewis three-point foul on Eddie Jones) was total crap. I thought Jones just faked Lewis out of his shorts, but I didn't see any contact at all. Still, those three free throws could have tied the game with 0:00.4 left. But Eddie Jones missed the first one. He nailed the second one, but the Heat needed a brick and a tip-in. Jones didn't get the rim with the third free throw, the Sonics got to inbound the ball, and that was it.
The Sonics just snapped Miami's 14-game winning streak. Incredible.
Monster nights from Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, but a MONSTER night off the bench for Danny Fortson...
PEEK AT THE BOXSCORE
starters
Ray Allen 35 pts/2 reb (12-25 FG, 6-10 3pt, 5-5 free throws), Rashard Lewis 17 pts/13 reb/2 ast/3 stl (7-20 FG), Luke Ridnour 10 pts/7 ast/2 reb (5-11 FG), Reggie Evans 2 pts/8 reb (14 min)
bench
Danny Fortson 15 pts/10 reb (4-8 FG, 7-9 free throws, 33 mins), Vlad Radmanovic 12 pts/6 reb (4-9 FG, 4-6 free throws, 31 min), Antonio Daniels 7 pts/3 reb/3 ast (3-5 FG, 26 min), Nick Collison 0 pts/2 reb (5 fouls, 6 minutes)
Jerome James Watch
0 pts/0 reb/1 stl/1 blk (5 fouls, 9 min)
team
shot 41.4% from the field (36-for-87), shot 9-for-20 from downtown (45%), shot 81% from free-throw line (17-21), outrebounded Miami 46-36 (16 offensive boards for Seattle), bench outscored Miami's bench 34-14, bench outrebounded Miami's bench 21-6
I can quickly explain the limited minutes for Jerome James, Reggie Evans, and Nick Collison. Danny Fortson was the only answer to Shaq down low on the defensive end tonight, and he amazingly wasn't piling up fouls at the pace to which we're accustomed; James and Collison were doing that instead (unfortunately for Collison, this breaks his five-game streak of really good contributions). Fortson got about 10 more minutes tonight than he usually does, for goodness' sake. Thank goodness he wasn't piling up fouls because his free-throw shooting is immensely important (though he did rim the one shot with 13 ticks left, which got the Sonics a one-point lead instead of two...it could have cost them). Still, it's a double-double off the bench. Amazing.
You should have seen Jerome James jump across the lane as that first free throw by Eddie Jones bounced hard off the base of the rim. There was some glee, definitely.
As for Rashard Lewis, his shot might have been a bit off, but he more than made up for it with the boards. I don't expect a double-double every night from him (though it'd be nice), but it was nice to see him get a ton of boards when Jerome James and Nick Collison weren't getting any.
It was Lewis' partner in crime that had the monster scoring night, as Ray Allen notched 32. What amazes me is all the shots he hits while he's drifting or floating sideways through the air. He rolls off a pick, the defender is just a split second late, and Allen (possibly falling sideways at this point) hoists up the shot. In a related note, the one shot I used to be able to hit in PE was what I thought was a Hakeem Olajuwon shot. You know, the one where he'd dribble from one side of the free throw line to the other? He'd dribble low and then sort of put up a half-hook? Okay, I'm probably wrong about everything here. I'm probably messing up the description of the shot, and I think I only actually hit it maybe four times total. What David Wells once said applied to me in high school: "I'm not an athlete, lady. I'm a baseball player."
Hey, Luke Ridnour got into double figures again. His shot is coming back, and a couple of his baskets were really nice driving layups, and he shot a couple of those floaters as well. They're pretty. I remember one time Kevin Calabro likened some of Luke's high-arcing shots to vintage Bob Cousy, where you'd see a basketball rise up over a sea of arms and find its way into the basket.
Well, at this point I have no idea where I'm going with this post and how I'm going to end it, so like the end of the episode of South Park where the kids get jacked up on cough syrup, I'm just gonna bail.
HUGE win, though. It took a couple of Miami mistakes to seal this one for the Sonics, but they pulled it off. You need some bounces every once in a while. I still thought that foul on Lewis on the last Miami play of the game was crap, though. I need to look at the replay closer, but even if it shows contact, I'm still going to say it's bull.
It really was a great game. Of course, televising it nationally would have meant running it up against the Sugar Bowl, but as Jeremy pointed out to me last night, there's no way the NBA scheduling crew could have predicted before the season that Sonics/Heat being a battle of titans. Anyway, I hope everyone that saw it enjoyed it. I wouldn't believe anyone that said they didn't. I was fully prepared to say this was a great game even if the Sonics lost.
Okay, so I didn't bail. I guess it's a natural tendency for me to eventually be able to close a post.
[Edit ~9:43p -- Part of my piece after the first quarter had part of the fourth-quarter notes attached to them. So in retrospect, I could nail Fortson for missing that free throw, but there was a blatant Miami lane violation on the free throw, and Fortson should have gotten another shot.]
[Edit ~9:51p -- It turns out the correct spelling is indeed "arcing" rather than "arcking." I thought the same rule applied as when you change "traffic" to "trafficking." That's not the case.]
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