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NEW JERSEY NETS @ INDIANA PACERS -1 -102
New Jersey at Indiana 7:00 pm EDT Eastern Conference First Round Nets lead, 3-2
Vince Carter will only need to look to himself to make a long-delayed return to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The high-flying veteran will aim to continue his stellar play when the New Jersey Nets face the Indiana Pacers in Game Six of their best-of-seven series on Thursday.
Winless in his previous three series in the postseason, Carter has been the driving force in getting the Nets within a win of the team's first trip to the conference semifinals since 2004. Acquired from the Toronto Raptors in December 2004, Carter has not been that far in the playoffs since 2001.
With All-Star guard Jason Kidd struggling in the series, Carter has stepped up, scoring 30.2 points on 47.8 percent shooting. In a decisive Game Five contest on Tuesday, he took advantage of an undermanned Pacers squad to score 34 points, grab a playoff career-high 15 rebounds and hand out seven assists in a 92-86 victory.
Richard Jefferson scored 24 points and Nenad Krstic added 19 and 11 rebounds for New Jersey, which beat Indiana in their previous postseason matchup, 3-1 in the first round in 2002.
Hampered by flu-like symptoms and playing without fellow starters Peja Stojakovic, Jamaal Tinsley and Jeff Foster, Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal had just 19 points on 8-of-18 shooting.
No other player managed more than 13 points for the Pacers, who shot 28 percent (7-of-25) from the 3-point arc to move a loss away from being eliminated in the first round for the first time in three years.
MIAMI HEAT -2 -107 @ CHICAGO BABY BULLS
Miami at Chicago 8:00 pm EDT Eastern Conference First Round Heat lead, 3-2
CHICAGO (Ticker) -- The Miami Heat's current playoff series is starting to resemble their last one. They hope things turn out differently this time around.
With their superstar battling a bruised hip, the Heat will try to eliminate the Chicago Bulls here Thursday when the teams meet in Game Six of their first-round series.
Wade suffered a left hip contusion in the second quarter of Miami's 92-78 victory in Game Five. The league's fifth-leading scorer, Wade poured in 15 of his 28 points after returning to the game midway through the third quarter.
Antoine Walker scored 17 points and Shaquille O'Neal contributed 16 for the Heat, who expect to have Wade available for this contest.
Still, the situation is quite a familiar one for Miami, which held a 3-2 series lead on Detroit in last season's Eastern Conference finals before an injury to Wade, combined with some poor play, led to the team losing the last two games of the series.
The Heat also are battling history. They are 0-9 all-time in playoff games in Chicago and played poorly in losing Games Three and Four here by an average of 12.5 points.
Chicago is trying to rebound from its hideous 34 percent shooting effort in Game Five. Andres Nocioni scored 23 points, but the Bulls' starting backcourt of Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon combined for only 19 points on 6-of-29 shooting.
If necessary, Game Seven would be played in Miami on Saturday.
New Jersey at Indiana 7:00 pm EDT Eastern Conference First Round Nets lead, 3-2
Vince Carter will only need to look to himself to make a long-delayed return to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The high-flying veteran will aim to continue his stellar play when the New Jersey Nets face the Indiana Pacers in Game Six of their best-of-seven series on Thursday.
Winless in his previous three series in the postseason, Carter has been the driving force in getting the Nets within a win of the team's first trip to the conference semifinals since 2004. Acquired from the Toronto Raptors in December 2004, Carter has not been that far in the playoffs since 2001.
With All-Star guard Jason Kidd struggling in the series, Carter has stepped up, scoring 30.2 points on 47.8 percent shooting. In a decisive Game Five contest on Tuesday, he took advantage of an undermanned Pacers squad to score 34 points, grab a playoff career-high 15 rebounds and hand out seven assists in a 92-86 victory.
Richard Jefferson scored 24 points and Nenad Krstic added 19 and 11 rebounds for New Jersey, which beat Indiana in their previous postseason matchup, 3-1 in the first round in 2002.
Hampered by flu-like symptoms and playing without fellow starters Peja Stojakovic, Jamaal Tinsley and Jeff Foster, Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal had just 19 points on 8-of-18 shooting.
No other player managed more than 13 points for the Pacers, who shot 28 percent (7-of-25) from the 3-point arc to move a loss away from being eliminated in the first round for the first time in three years.
MIAMI HEAT -2 -107 @ CHICAGO BABY BULLS
Miami at Chicago 8:00 pm EDT Eastern Conference First Round Heat lead, 3-2
CHICAGO (Ticker) -- The Miami Heat's current playoff series is starting to resemble their last one. They hope things turn out differently this time around.
With their superstar battling a bruised hip, the Heat will try to eliminate the Chicago Bulls here Thursday when the teams meet in Game Six of their first-round series.
Wade suffered a left hip contusion in the second quarter of Miami's 92-78 victory in Game Five. The league's fifth-leading scorer, Wade poured in 15 of his 28 points after returning to the game midway through the third quarter.
Antoine Walker scored 17 points and Shaquille O'Neal contributed 16 for the Heat, who expect to have Wade available for this contest.
Still, the situation is quite a familiar one for Miami, which held a 3-2 series lead on Detroit in last season's Eastern Conference finals before an injury to Wade, combined with some poor play, led to the team losing the last two games of the series.
The Heat also are battling history. They are 0-9 all-time in playoff games in Chicago and played poorly in losing Games Three and Four here by an average of 12.5 points.
Chicago is trying to rebound from its hideous 34 percent shooting effort in Game Five. Andres Nocioni scored 23 points, but the Bulls' starting backcourt of Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon combined for only 19 points on 6-of-29 shooting.
If necessary, Game Seven would be played in Miami on Saturday.