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MIAMI -- LeBron James caught an alley-oop flip from Dwyane Wade on a fast break, threw down a dunk and then headed up court with his arms spread like some superhero. cheap jerseys from china . James can look the part, whether hes wearing a clear mask or a black one. Switching to a clear protective cover at the NBAs request, James had 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists Saturday to help the Miami Heat earn their seventh consecutive victory by beating the Orlando Magic 112-98. James dispensed with the black mask he wore Thursday when playing for the first time since he broke his nose. "He was a clear-mask guy tonight," teammate Chris Bosh said. "He was just a regular dude, a regular citizen of Gotham." Wade scored 24 points and Bosh 20 for the Heat, who shot 58 per cent. Eleven players scored for the Heat, and their bench totalled 39 points. James said league officials wanted him to wear something that would allow opponents to see his face. The newer mask seemed to bother James more than the black one did, and he frequently took it off when the clock was stopped. "Its not comfortable," he said. "Having something on your face isnt comfortable, but it is what it is." While the mask was a nuisance and James nose remained tender, neither hindered his performance. "Its another challenge for a great player," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "His game is an aggressive, attacking game, and theres going to be contact. But coming off the injury, he has been as aggressive as he was before." James streak of five consecutive games with more than 30 points came to an end, but he took just 12 shots and played only 31 minutes. "When you come out and take care of business, thats a reward," he said. After sitting out a week because of his broken nose, he avoided another injury when he went stumbling into the third row after making a fast-break layup and settled in an unoccupied seat. The Heat improved to 10-1 since Feb. 1, and theyve won their past four games by an average of 19 points. "Defensively were flying around and were communicating," James said. "And offensively, obviously were playing at a high level." The Heat completed a sweep of the four-game season series against their in-state rivals. "Theyre an efficient team, the most efficient team in the NBA," Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. "Thats done with LeBron setting up people, and youre getting shots that you want. Youre not rushing." The game was the first for the last-place Magic since they broke a 16-game road losing streak at Philadelphia on Wednesday. Tobias Harris led Orlando with 20 points, and Nikola Vucevic added 18. With the Heat taking the lead for good early in the second quarter, Bosh played only 18 minutes, his lowest total since Nov. 16. "I got a bunch of night-off jokes tonight," Bosh said. "I enjoyed it. Guys filled in and did their job." Among the contributors off the bench was Greg Oden, playing his 11th game after being sidelined by knee trouble for 3 1/2 years. He went 3 for 3 for eight points with four rebounds in 13 minutes. "Im happy to be on the team," Oden said. "When I get a chance to play, I just dont want to mess up." Heat guard Mario Chalmers had the highlight play of the first half, fetching a loose ball while seated at midcourt with his back to his basket, then flipping a pass over his shoulder to James to set up a fast-break basket. The Heat also got to the rim often out of their half-court offence. "They do a good job moving the ball, driving, kicking," Vucevic said. "They make plays for each other. Theyre very unselfish." NOTES: Orlandos Arron Afflalo missed his fourth consecutive game. He was out with a sprained ankle and is now recovering from a brief illness. ... At 42-14, the Heat have tied their best start through 56 games. They had the same record a year ago, when they went on to win their second consecutive NBA title. ... The Heat improved to 15-0 at home when leading at halftime. cheap jerseys . Brad Richards scored twice on New Yorks previously anemic power play, Martin St. Louis had three assists in his best game since joining the Rangers last month, and Henrik Lundqvist kept the Carolina Hurricanes at bay in a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night. wholesale nfl jerseys . It kind of breaks up the week for me and sets the stage for the upcoming week.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca. I was watching the Los Angeles Kings 3-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks Monday night and as the Kings bus rolled back up the freeway with a 2-0 series lead, I want to share a couple of insights from the game. It is obvious to anyone that dials into this series that a clear rivalry exists between these two teams beyond just geographic location. Finishing hard checks and delivering punishing hits, while a given in every playoff series, is often taken to excess when teams really dislike each other. Particular value is placed upon making solid contact and delivering punishing hits whenever possible on key targets; Drew Doughty, Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf certainly make the list, as do others. Jonathan Quick has regained his Conn Smythe Trophy winning form and is likely to become a primary target moving forward. The Ducks need to find a way to solve that obstacle in quick order if they are to jump back into this series! Game 3 becomes pivotal and the referees had better come to work with their radar up and head on a swivel. The goal crease at both ends of the rink needs to be a key focus of their attention. At 3:21 of the second period in Game 2, Quick was assessed a minor penalty for roughing after Corey Perry, and to a lesser degree Jake Muzzin, crashed into the Kings netminder (Click here for the viz). wholesale jerseys. By all appearance, Perry took full advantage of a retraining hook by Muzzin to make more solid contact with Quick inside the crease. Quick had covered the puck after it was sent his way from above the top of the face-off circle. Muzzin then implemented the hook on Perry above the hash marks in an effort to keep the Ducks player away from his most valuable goalkeeper. Referee Steve Kozari curled below the goal line and assumed a position directly behind the net as Perry and Muzzin were falling toward the goal crease. The referee missed a golden opportunity to send a message and acknowledge both the illegal restraint by Muzzin and the lack of effort by Perry to avoid or minimize contact with the goalkeeper. A much better awareness by the referees is required relative to contact with the goalkeepers at both ends of the ice as this series moves forward. The other thing I want to share with you is a little slice of "nasty" that Ryan Getzlaf extended to Dustin Brown after the two players were getting back to their feet following a collision and fall to the ice well away from the play once Getzlaf dumped the puck into the Kings end zone. The stick blade neck shave (Click here for the viz) that Getzlaf provided Brown free of charge (no penalty) signals not only the dislike players from both teams have for one another but also demonstrates the need for better awareness from the non-action referee (players away from the puck).cheap jerseys cheap jerseys from china ' ' ' |
