The Miami Heat were unable to capture their fourth consecutive Eastern Conference championship as they fell to the Indiana Pacers 93-90 in Game 5 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Wednesday night. The Heat lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and both teams will face each other for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals on Friday night in Miami.
Indiana got out ahead 18-10 in the first nine minutes of the game and led 22-16 after one quarter. The Heat continued on a 17-2 tear at the start of the second and were up 31-24. Miami finished the period with a 9-2 edge and led 42-33 at halftime.
The Heat extended their margin up to ten points at 45-35 with 9:12 remaining in the third on a Rashard Lewis three-point shot. The Pacers bounced back with a 16-2 run midway through the period to go up 57-52 with 2:15 left and went into the final quarter with the lead 64-57. Miami trailed by 11 points early in the fourth 77-66 until they scored nine straight points to set up a 15-4 spurt to tie the game at 81-81 with 3:50 to go. The Heat could not regain the lead down the stretch after that push.
Dwyane Wade paced the Heat with 18 points, seven assists and eight rebounds in 40 minutes. Chris Bosh nailed a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds while Lewis had 18 points. Ray Allen came off the bench and popped in 15. LeBron James was in foul trouble throughout the entire game as he had five personal fouls and seven points in 24 minutes of play.
Paul George put together a game-high 37 points and six steals in 45 minutes for Indiana. David West had 19 points and nine rebounds while Lance Stephenson scored 12 points. Roy Hibbert contributed a double-double with 10 points along with 13 rebounds.
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