SPORTS
L AWRENCE J OURNAL -W ORLD
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
| 5B
SCOREBOARD College World Series
MLS
At TD Ameritrade Park Omaha Omaha, Neb. Double Elimination x-if necessary June 15 UCLA 9, Stony Brook 1 Arizona 4, Florida State 3, 12 innings Saturday’s Games Arkansas 8, Kent State 1 South Carolina 7, Florida 3 Sunday’s Games Florida State 12, Stony Brook 2, Stony Brook eliminated Arizona 4, UCLA 0 Monday’s Games Kent St. 5, Florida 4, Florida eliminated Arkansas 2, South Carolina 1 Today’s Game Game 9 — Florida State (49-16), vs. UCLA (48-15), 7 p.m. Wednesday’s Game Game 10 — Kent State (47-19) vs. South Carolina (46-18), 7 p.m. Thursday’s Games Game 11 — Arizona (45-17) vs. Game 9 winner, 4 p.m. Game 12 — Arkansas (46-20) vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. Friday’s Games x-Game 13 — Game 6 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 4 p.m. x-Game 14 — Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. If only one game is necessary, it will start at 8 p.m. Championship Series (Best-of-3) June 24 Game 1 — 7 p.m. June 25 Game 2 — 7 p.m. June 26 x-Game 1 — 7 p.m.
EASTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA D.C. 9 4 3 30 29 19 Sporting K.C. 9 3 1 28 19 10 New York 8 4 2 26 27 21 Chicago 6 5 3 21 18 18 Columbus 5 4 4 19 13 13 Houston 5 4 4 19 15 16 New England 5 7 2 17 18 18 Montreal 4 7 3 15 19 22 Philadelphia 2 8 2 8 8 15 Toronto FC 1 10 0 3 8 23 WESTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA Real Salt Lake 10 3 2 32 25 14 San Jose 8 3 3 27 27 17 Vancouver 7 3 4 25 17 15 Seattle 7 4 3 24 17 13 Colorado 6 7 1 19 20 19 Chivas USA 4 7 3 15 9 17 Los Angeles 4 8 2 14 16 21 Portland 3 6 4 13 12 16 FC Dallas 3 9 4 13 16 26 NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie. Wednesday’s Games Toronto FC at Houston, 8 p.m. Los Angeles at Real Salt Lake, 8 p.m. San Jose at Colorado, 8:30 p.m. Sporting Kansas City at Seattle FC, 9 p.m. Montreal at Chivas USA, 9:30 p.m. New York at Vancouver, 10 p.m. Saturday’s Games New England at Toronto FC, 4:30 p.m. Sporting Kansas City at Philadelphia, 6 p.m. Houston at Montreal, 6:30 p.m. Columbus at Chicago, 7:30 p.m. Chivas USA at FC Dallas, 8 p.m. San Jose at Real Salt Lake, 8 p.m. Vancouver at Los Angeles, 9:30 p.m. Sunday’s Games Seattle FC at Portland, 4 p.m. D.C. United at New York, 6 p.m.
Wimbledon Qualifying
2012 European Championship Glance
Monday At Bank of England Sports Ground Roehampton, England Surface: Grass-Outdoor Singles Men First Round Wayne Odesnik (20), United States, def. Filip Krajinovic, Serbia, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2. Tim Smyczek, United States, def. Rogerio Dutra Silva (6), Brazil, 7-6 (5), 6-4. Matteo Viola, Italy, def. Alexander Kudryavtsev, Russia, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2. Romain Jouan, France, def. Mischa Zverev, Germany, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3. Florent Serra (22), France, def. Agustin Velotti, Argentina, 6-1, 6-1. Peter Torebko, Germany, def. Michael Berrer (7), Germany, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-1. Robert Farah, Colombia, def. Javier Marti, Spain, 7-6 (4), 6-4. Ryan Sweeting (21), United States, def. Alex Kuznetsov, United States, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3. Jesse Levine (5), United States, def. Adrian Mannarino, France, 6-3, 2-6, 10-8. Carlos Salamanca, Colombia, def. Martin Alund, Argentina, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5). Marco Chiudinelli (17), Switzerland, def. Andrew Fitzpatrick, Britain, 6-3, 6-4. Dustin Brown, Germany, def. Thomas Schoorel, Netherlands, 6-3, 2-2, retired. Stephane Robert, France, def. Edward Corrie, Britain, 6-4, 6-3. Hiroki Moriya, Japan, def. Richard Bloomfield, Britain, 6-4, 6-4. Peter Polansky, Canada, def. Pablo Galdon, Argentina, 6-4, 6-1. Rajeev Ram (8), United States, def. Maximo Gonzalez, Argentina, 6-2, 6-3. Izak Van der Merwe, South Africa, def. Augustin Gensse (29), France, 6-3, 7-6 (5). Ivan Navarro, Spain, def. Daniel Brands (2), Germany, 6-4, 6-4. Michael Yani, United States, def. Philipp Oswald, Austria, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4. Adrian Menendez-Maceiras, Spain, def. Jan Hernych, Czech Republic, 4-6, 7-6 (10), 10-8. Joao Sousa (28), Portugal, def. Stefano Galvani, Italy, 6-4, 6-3. Maxime Authom, Belgium, def. Rik de Voest (26), South Africa, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. Ruben Bemelmans (18), Belgium, def. Evgeny Donskoy, Russia, 6-2, 7-5. Erik Chvojka, Canada, def. Bobby Reynolds (14), United States, 6-3, 5-7, 11-9. Jurgen Zopp (1), Estonia, def. Guillermo Olaso, Spain, 6-4, 6-4. Marco Trungelliti, Argentina, def. Nikola Ciric, Serbia, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 11-9. Inigo Cervantes (31), Spain, def. George Morgan, Britain, 6-0, 6-4. Jerzy Janowicz (24), Poland, def. Peter Gojowczyk, Germany, 7-5, retired. Zhang Ze, China, def. David Rice, Britain, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2. Chris Eaton, Britain, def. Benjamin Mitchell, Australia, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3. Damir Dzumhur, Bosnia-Herzegovina, def. Dusan Lojda, Czech Republic, 7-6 (4), 6-1. Marsel Ilhan (25), Turkey, def. Danai Udomchoke, Thailand, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Martin Fischer, Austria, def. Stefan Seifert, Germany, 6-7 (6), 6-3, 6-2. Simon Greul, Germany, def. Gastao Elias, Portugal, 7-6 (6), 6-2. Denis Kudla, United States, def. Daniel Munoz-de la Nava (15), Spain, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Andrey Kuznetsov (32), Russia, def. Ricardas Berankis, Lithuania, 6-4, 7-5. Guillaume Rufin, France, def. Amir Weintraub, Israel, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Harri Heliovaara, Finland, def. Julio Silva, Brazil, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4. James Duckworth, Australia, def. Aljaz Bedene (16), Slovenia, 6-3, 7-6 (0). Simone Vagnozzi, Italy, def. Pavol Cervenak, Slovakia, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Jonathan Dasnieres de Veigy, France, def. Frederico Gil (3), Portugal, 7-5, 4-6, 6-3. Simone Bolelli (9), Italy, def. Gregoire Burquier, France, 7-6 (7), 6-4. Alessandro Giannessi (13), Italy, def. Evgeny Kirillov, Russia, 6-3, 6-4. Farrukh Dustov, Uzbekistan, def. Josselin Ouanna, France, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5. Arnau Brugues-Davi, Spain, def. Roman Borvanov, Moldova, 7-6 (2), 6-3. Kamil Capkovic, Slovakia, def. Franco Skugor, Croatia, 6-4, 7-6 (5). Marc Gicquel, France, def. Yuki Bhambri, India, 6-4, 6-0. Brian Baker (11), United States, def. Radu Albot, Moldova, 6-2, 6-3. Thomas Fabbiano, Italy, def. Liam Broady, Britain, 7-6 (5), 6-4. Andreas Haider-Maurer, Austria, def. Pedro Sousa, Portugal, 6-4, 7-6 (4). Thiago Alves (27), Brazil, def. Yang Tsung-hua, Taiwan, 7-6 (6), 6-7 (4), 6-4. Jimmy Wang, Taiwan, def. Dusan Lajovic, Serbia, 6-4, 6-1. Denis Gremelmayr, Germany, def. Vincent Millot, France, 7-5, 6-3. Ivo Minar, Czech Republic, def. Mathieu Rodrigues, France, 6-4, 7-5. Sergei Bubka, Ukraine, def. Robby Ginepri, United States, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4. Michael Russell (4), United States, def. Michael Lammer, Switzerland, 6-1, 6-1. Laurynas Grigelis, Lithuania, def. Antonio Veic (30), Croatia, 6-2, 6-3. Marcel Felder, Uruguay, def. Victor Crivoi, Romania, 6-0, 6-1. Kenny de Schepper, France, def. Arnaud Clement (23), France, 6-7 (8), 7-6 (5), 6-3. Yuichi Sugita, Japan, def. Gianluca Naso, Italy, 6-0, 6-7 (5), 6-4. Kyle Edmund, Britain, def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver (12), Spain, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-4. Teymuraz Gabashvili (19), Russia, def. Yannick Mertens, Belgium, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3), 6-3. Maxime Teixeira, France, def. Jan Mertl, Czech Republic, 6-3, 6-4. Roberto Bautista-Agut (10), Spain, def. Luke Bambridge, Britain, 6-1, 6-2.
FIRST ROUND GROUP C Monday’s Games At Gdansk, Poland Spain 1, Croatia 0, Spain wins group At Poznan, Poland Italy 2, Ireland 0, Italry advances GROUP D GP W D L GF GA PTS France 2 1 1 0 3 1 4 England 2 1 1 0 4 3 4 Ukraine 2 1 0 1 2 3 3 Sweden 2 0 0 2 3 5 0 June 11 At Donetsk, Ukraine France 1, England 1 At Kiev, Ukraine Ukraine 2, Sweden 1 June 15 At Donetsk, Ukraine France 2, Ukraine 0 At Kiev, Ukraine England 3, Sweden 2 Today’s Games At Kiev, Ukraine Sweden vs. France, 1:45 p.m. At Donetsk, Ukraine England vs. Ukraine, 1:45 p.m. QUARTERFINALS Thursday’s Game At Warsaw, Poland Czech Republic vs. Portugal, 1:45 p.m. Friday’s Game At Gdansk, Poland Germany vs. Greece, 1:45 p.m. Saturday’s Game At Kiev, Ukraine Spain vs. Group D second place, 1:45 p.m. Sunday’s Game At Donetsk, Ukraine Group D winner vs. Italy, 1:45 p.m. SEMIFINALS June 27 At Donetsk, Ukraine Warsaw quarterfinal winner vs. Kiev quarterfinal winner, 1:45 p.m. June 28 At Warsaw, Poland Gdansk quarterfinal winner vs. Donetsk quarterfinal winner, 1:45 p.m. FINAL July 1 At Kiev, Ukraine Semifinal winners, 1:45 p.m.
FedExCup Standings Through June 17 Player Points 1. Jason Dufner 1,849 2. Hunter Mahan 1,509 3. Tiger Woods 1,452 4. Zach Johnson 1,414 5. Bubba Watson 1,372 6. Rory McIlroy 1,372 7. Matt Kuchar 1,343 8. Phil Mickelson 1,313 9. Webb Simpson 1,259 10. Carl Pettersson 1,258 11. Rickie Fowler 1,197 12. Justin Rose 1,169 13. Johnson Wagner 1,124 14. Luke Donald 1,070 15. John Huh 982 16. Kyle Stanley 981 17. Mark Wilson 940 18. Jim Furyk 931 19. Bill Haas 922 20. Steve Stricker 911 21. Dustin Johnson 898 22. Brandt Snedeker 888 23. Ben Curtis 886 24. Keegan Bradley 876 25. Martin Laird 847 26. Graeme McDowell 812 27. Ernie Els 802 28. Kevin Na 779 29. Ben Crane 747 30. Robert Garrigus 709 31. Spencer Levin 695 32. Lee Westwood 690 33. Louis Oosthuizen 672 34. Charlie Wi 664 35. D.A. Points 662 36. Jonathan Byrd 655 37. Ryan Palmer 641 38. Matt Every 641 39. Michael Thompson628 40. Charles Howell III 621 41. Bo Van Pelt 619 42. John Rollins 611 43. John Senden 604 44. Ken Duke 604 45. George McNeill 572 46. Kevin Stadler 561 47. Cameron Tringale 548 48. Brian Davis 546 49. David Toms 524 50. Brendon de Jonge 516 51. Sean O’Hair 514 52. Sang-Moon Bae 510 53. Aaron Baddeley 506 54. Dicky Pride 503 55. Ryan Moore 500 56. Jeff Overton 495 57. Rory Sabbatini 494 58. Bud Cauley 492 59. Scott Piercy 485 60. Jimmy Walker 483 61. Greg Owen 477 62. Padraig Harrington475 63. Pat Perez 473 64. Nick Watney 463 65. Bryce Molder 460 66. Seung-Yul Noh 456 67. Jonas Blixt 455 68. John Merrick 454 69. Harris English 449 70. Geoff Ogilvy 445 71. Chris Stroud 440 72. Ian Poulter 435 73. Greg Chalmers 434 74. Tom Gillis 432 75. K.J. Choi 423 76. Robert Allenby 415 77. John Mallinger 410 78. J.B. Holmes 410 79. Bob Estes 402 80. Vijay Singh 400
Money $4,077,013 $3,255,212 $3,050,398 $3,072,341 $3,204,778 $3,164,700 $3,151,352 $2,857,371 $2,735,197 $2,459,113 $2,731,569 $2,636,250 $2,093,283 $2,299,506 $2,120,080 $2,022,213 $1,953,639 $1,939,396 $1,887,862 $1,862,017 $1,815,950 $1,757,814 $2,154,480 $1,728,110 $1,885,834 $1,827,484 $1,644,658 $1,690,805 $1,508,555 $1,329,838 $1,240,911 $1,692,789 $1,535,067 $1,219,342 $1,345,313 $1,486,315 $1,163,762 $1,365,897 $1,215,966 $896,483 $1,376,322 $1,183,937 $1,089,172 $1,155,835 $1,020,035 $1,035,276 $1,010,016 $941,543 $1,071,928 $736,675 $776,434 $967,285 $991,289 $1,088,363 $933,709 $845,378 $962,940 $771,461 $852,965 $871,808 $827,163 $1,018,762 $795,467 $822,007 $747,195 $755,692 $873,798 $746,633 $818,206 $744,108 $832,236 $901,808 $564,322 $726,804 $682,445 $759,557 $623,490 $755,430 $683,558 $630,805
81. Marc Leishman 397 82. Sergio Garcia 396 83. Henrik Stenson 394 84. Harrison Frazar 386 85. Charl Schwartzel 380 86. Daniel Summerhays379 87. Andres Romero 377 88. Ricky Barnes 376 89. Colt Knost 370 90. Chad Campbell 370 91. Martin Flores 365 92. Brian Gay 357 93. Adam Scott 356 94. Fredrik Jacobson 354 95. James Driscoll 350 95. David Hearn 350 97. Jeff Maggert 345 98. Blake Adams 345 99. Boo Weekley 335 100. Charley Hoffman 334 101. Kevin Chappell 333 102. Davis Love III 323 103. Chris Kirk 318 104. Roberto Castro 312 105. Trevor Immelman309 106. J.J. Henry 307 107. David Mathis 306 108. Graham DeLaet 302 109. Tommy Gainey 300 110. Billy Mayfair 296 111. Jason Day 295 112. William McGirt 289
$652,982 $801,316 $701,103 $720,635 $810,744 $674,625 $700,619 $626,889 $746,846 $508,149 $557,767 $607,483 $738,899 $659,431 $560,078 $585,355 $503,193 $590,492 $627,199 $604,519 $443,157 $552,384 $549,571 $345,674 $476,104 $556,911 $564,940 $526,902 $545,281 $477,637 $579,786 $403,418
Sprint Cup Points Leaders Through June 17 1. Matt Kenseth, 565. 2. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 561. 3. Greg Biffle, 548. 4. Jimmie Johnson, 532. 5. Denny Hamlin, 514. 6. Kevin Harvick, 504. 7. Martin Truex Jr., 497. 8. Tony Stewart, 491. 9. Clint Bowyer, 481. 10. Brad Keselowski, 458. 11. Carl Edwards, 456. 12. Kyle Busch, 432. 13. Ryan Newman, 427. 14. Paul Menard, 421. 15. Joey Logano, 407. 16. Kasey Kahne, 391. 17. Marcos Ambrose, 388. 18. Jamie McMurray, 377. 19. Juan Pablo Montoya, 377. 20. Jeff Gordon, 375. 21. Jeff Burton, 375. 22. Aric Almirola, 372. 23. Mark Martin, 341. 24. A J Allmendinger, 330. 25. Regan Smith, 326. 26. Bobby Labonte, 316. 27. Kurt Busch, 289. 28. Casey Mears, 267. 29. David Ragan, 261. 30. David Gilliland, 246. 31. Travis Kvapil, 220. 32. Landon Cassill, 214. 33. Dave Blaney, 212. 34. David Reutimann, 198. 35. J.J. Yeley, 106. 36. David Stremme, 103. 37. Michael McDowell, 83. 38. Brian Vickers, 66. 39. Tony Raines, 61. 40. Ken Schrader, 60. 41. Brendan Gaughan, 50. 42. Josh Wise, 45. 43. Terry Labonte, 42. 44. Stephen Leicht, 34. 45. Scott Riggs, 27. 46. Michael Waltrip, 26. 47. Hermie Sadler, 13. 48. Scott Speed, 12. 49. Bill Elliott, 7. 50. Robby Gordon, 6.
BASEBALL American League CHICAGO WHITE SOX-Agreed to terms with OF Courtney Hawkins on a minor league contract and assigned him to Bristol (Appalachian). Agreed to terms with RHP Kyle Hansen, C Jose Barraza and C-1B Zach Stoner on minor league contracts. CLEVELAND INDIANS-Released RHP Hector Ambriz from Columbus (IL). KANSAS CITY ROYALS-Placed 2B Chris Getz on the 15-day DL. Optioned RHP Nate Adcock to Omaha (PCL). Recalled RHP Louis Coleman and LHP Tommy Hottovy from Omaha. LOS ANGELES ANGELS-Reinstated C Bobby Wilson from the seven-day concussion DL. Recalled 3B Andrew Romine from Salt Lake (PCL). Designated RHP David Pauley for assignment. TORONTO BLUE JAYS-Agreed to terms with LHP Matt Smoral. National League CHICAGO CUBS-Placed RHP Ryan Dempster on the 15-day DL. Recalled LHP Scott Maine from Iowa (PCL). Activated C Geovany Soto from the 15-day DL. Optioned C Welington Castillo to Iowa. CINCINNATI REDS-Activated 3B Scott Rolen from the 15-day DL. Optioned INF/OF Kristoper Negron to Louisville (IL). HOUSTON ASTROS-Agreed to terms with RHP Lance McCullers. BASKETBALL National Basketball Association NEW ORLEANS HORNETS-Announced president Hugh Weber will not return. Named Dennis Lauscha president and Mickey Loomis head of basketball operations. Women’s National Basketball Association TULSA SHOCK-Signed C Courtney Paris. Released C Lynetta Kizer. FOOTBALL National Football League NEW YORK JETS-Waived LB Donovan Robinson. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES-Agreed to terms with DT Fletcher Cox on a four-year contract. Claimed DE Monte Taylor off waivers from Seattle. SAN DIEGO CHARGERS-Signed RB LaDainian Tomlinson to a one-day contract and announced his retirement. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS-Released TE John Nalbone. Signed T Edawn Coughman. HOCKEY National Hockey League CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS-Agreed to terms with F Brandon Bollig and F Ben Smith on two-year contracts and G Carter Hutton on a one-year contract. Released G Alexander Salak. DALLAS STARS-Named Curt Fraser assistant coach. NASHVILLE PREDATORS-Signed G Magnus Hellberg to an entry-level contract. TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING-Re-signed F Mike Angelidis to a one-year contract. TENNIS ATP-Fined David Nalbandian $12,560 and stripped him of $57,350 in prize money for unsportsmanlike conduct during Sunday’s Aegon Championships final. COLLEGE GEORGIA-Named Josh Brewer women’s golf coach. HIGH POINT-Announced women’s lacrosse MF Jordan Hammond will transfer from Maryland. MARQUETTE-Named Jerry Wainwright director of men’s basketball operations and Devin Johnson video coordinator. MICHIGAN STATE-Signed athletic director Mark Hollis to a five-year contract. MIDDLE TENNESSEE-Named Mark Moore to the men’s basketball strength and conditioning staff. NORTHERN ARIZONA-Named Sue Darling women’s basketball coach. SAINT AUGUSTINE’S-Named Raheem Waller men’s assistant basketball coach, Crishna Hill women’s assistant basketball coach and Bruce Cozart assistant softball coach. SEATTLE-Agreed to terms with baseball coach Donny Harrel on a four-year contract.
Alan Diaz/AP Photo
MIAMI FORWARD LEBRON JAMES TAKES A BREAK on the scorer’s table during practice Monday in Miami. The Heat will play the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of the NBA finals tonight.
Heat on familiar ground — up 2-1 in Finals MIAMI (AP) — LeBron James arrived for practice Monday wearing limegreen sneakers, a highly fluorescent shade. It was the fashion statement du jour for the league’s three-time MVP, much like the eyeglass frames he’s been sporting after games throughout this postseason. But those sneakers probably would have remained tucked away in the drawer beneath his locker during last year’s NBA Finals, since very little about James’ game would be considered glowing or luminous during those two weeks. Different year, different story. For the second straight season, the Miami Heat hold a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals. There’s a glaring difference this time around — that being James is playing at the top of his game. And he’ll try to help the Heat move within one win of a championship tonight, when Miami plays host to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of this title series. “We’re a totally different team than we was last year when we was up 2-1,” James said Monday. “We’re a totally different team. We understand what it takes to win, we’ve used that motivation, and we will continue to use that motivation. But last year is last year, and we’re not going into a Game 4 on someone else’s floor. We’re going into a Game 4 on our floor with a lot of experience in this type of situation. We’ll be ready. We love the challenge.” Miami lost Game 4 in Dallas last year, the start of a three-game slide that ended with the Mavericks hoisting the title trophy. So the Thunder know a 2-1 deficit in a series is hardly insurmountable, even though the homecourt roles are reversed this time around. And if Oklahoma City needed more proof, all the Thunder need do is remember the Western Conference finals when they lost the first two games to San Antonio, becoming the 19th and 20th entries on the Spurs’ incredible winning streak. The Spurs didn’t win another game the rest of the way. “We were down 2-0 against San Antonio and everybody thought the series was over,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. “But I know our guys, they’re very competitive, they’re very resilient. They’ve always showed
SCHEDULE (x-if necessary) Miami 2, Oklahoma City 1 Tuesday, June 12: Oklahoma City 105, Miami 94 Thursday, June 14: Miami 100, Oklahoma City 96 Sunday: Miami 91, Oklahoma City 85 Today: Oklahoma City at Miami, 8 p.m. Thursday: Oklahoma City at Miami, 8 p.m. x-Sunday, June 24: Miami at Oklahoma City, 7 p.m. x-Tuesday, June 26: Miami at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m. that type of effort every game, and we’ve always been a great bounce-back team. I thought last night was a great bounce-back last night. It’s unfortunate we didn’t make a couple plays, and uncharacteristic, also.” Uncharacteristic. That would also be a fine word to describe how James played in the finals last season. He freely acknowledges that he “didn’t make enough plays” against the Mavericks a year ago, and the numbers — 17.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game — back that up, as do his well-chronicled fourth quarter struggles in that series. So far in this year’s finals, James is averaging 30.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4 assists, and in the final minutes of Miami’s two wins in the series he’s done his part to slam the door on the Thunder. “He’s been aggressive. He’s an aggressive player,” Thunder guard James Harden said. “He’s been aggressive all year, all postseason. He’s tall, strong, and physical. He’s a tough matchup. It takes five guys to really lock down on their offense because they’re a very offensive team especially with LeBron and (Dwyane) Wade.” James is shooting 46 percent in the series, not even close to the 57 percent clip Kevin Durant is putting up for Oklahoma City. But here’s maybe one piece of proof to support that aggression notion Harden was speaking of — James is 25 for 29 from the foul line in the three games, while Durant is just 14 for 19 so far in the series. James has done much of his work near the rim in these finals. But while it wasn’t his most memorable shot, perhaps the biggest one he hit all night
in Miami’s Game 3 victory was a 3-pointer late in the third quarter, one of just five shots that the Heat made from outside the paint in that game. That shot put Miami up entering the fourth, and seemed to extend the Thunder defense just enough to allow James, Wade and Chris Bosh to create more in the lane late. “The biggest evolution of great players is they always stay in constant state of being uncomfortable,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “They don’t stay satisfied. And LeBron every summer has added something to his game. I’ve seen it when I’ve followed him from afar, and now that I’ve gotten to know him he’s added two, three, four different elements now to his game, the welldocumented one of the post-up game, which we needed. But he continues to try to improve and stay uncomfortable. I think that’s a sign of greatness.” Another sign of greatness? Rings. James’ first is just two wins away, again. And yes, the memories of what went wrong in 2011 still drive Miami now. “Experience don’t guarantee you anything,” Wade said. “It just lets you know I’ve been here before. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be successful for you. So for us we’ve got to continue ... to make the game that we’re in, the moment that we’re in the biggest moment and the biggest game and not look back and not look forward too much. Obviously the team that was here that lost the championship last year, that burning sensation is going to be inside of us until we change that.” A year ago, the talk was how James shied away from the biggest moments, the brightest moments. It’s not happening now. Miami overcame a 10-point deficit in the third quarter of Game 3, becoming the first team in these playoffs to dig out of that large a second-half hole against the Thunder. James had eight points and four rebounds in the fourth quarter — no Thunder player had more than four points or two rebounds in those last 12 minutes. Not pretty, but more than good enough to put the Heat back in the spot where last year’s finals went awry. “I don’t give a damn how we get four,” James said. “We can win 32-31. It doesn’t matter to me.”