LeBron James ties a playoff career high in points with 49, as the Heat take a commanding 3-1 series lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

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James was unstoppable with 49 points on 16 of 24 shooting, Dwyane Wade added 15 points, Chris Bosh added 12 points, including hitting a crucial three pointer from the corner. The Heat shot close to 53% from the field, connected on 8 three pointers, and hit 20 of 27 from the free throw line. Ray Allen added 11 points and grabbed 7 rebounds, that was a plus for the Heat. Furthermore, Chris Andersen had only five points but had 6 rebounds. The Heat were outrebounded by the Nets 40-34, but when you have Allen doing what he did for the Heat on the board it is a huge boost. Recall, that Miami ranked 30th in rebounding during the regular season.

The Heat called a timeout with 1:15 remaining in the fourth quarter with the score tied at 94. After, James was double teamed inside the paint he kicked back out to Chalmers who found a wide open Bosh at the three point line and drained it to give the Heat a 97-94 lead late in the fourth quarter. The Nets Joe Johnson would have cut the Heats lead to one, but could not connect on an 11-foot step back and that was the end of the game. Joe Johnson finished the game with 18 points, but on 5 of 15 shooting. Johnson had the opportunity to draw a sixth foul on James, but couldn’t capitalize because of James great defense. Nets had four other players who scored in double figure Pierce 16, Williams 13, Livingston 13, and Anderson 10. The Nets shot 43% from the field, connected only on 5 three pointers, and hit 23 of 28 from the free throw line. If you recall in game three the Nets connected on 15 three pointers to lead them towards a game 3 victory.

James scored 49 points with the Cleveland Cavaliers against the Orlando Magic in the 2009 Eastern Conference finals. He had the opportunity to score 50 points in a playoff game, which is a great accomplishment, but missed a free throw with 1.1 remaining in the game. Last NBA player to score 50 plus points in a single playoff game was Dirk Nowitzki in the 2006 Western Conference Finals against the Phoenix Suns. Other NBA players such as Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone, Vince Carter, and Michael Jordan have scored 50 points in a single playoff game.

Game Notes

Heat has a record of 7-1 in this year NBA playoffs and on Wednesday has the opportunity to close out the Brooklyn Nets and advance to the fourth straight Eastern Conference finals appearance in the era of the big three. In the first year of the big three era the Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 4-1, second year was the Indiana Pacers 4-2, and last year the Chicago Bulls 4-1. In the era of the big three Miami has an overall record of 12-4 in the second round of the NBA playoffs. LeBron James broke Dwyane Wade’s franchise record for points in a playoff game in Miami’s win Monday night. Game five will be tomorrow night at the America Airlines Arena, tipoff set at 7:00 pm

Most Points in a Playoff Game Heat Franchise History

Player Points Round LeBron James 49 ’14 East semis Dwyane Wade 46 ’10 1st round James 45 ’12 East finals Wade 43 ’06 NBA Finals