Apr 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) scores over New York Knicks point guard Baron Davis (85) during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

Miami snaps New York’s 10-game home winning streak. The Heat cool off the Knicks with 4^th quarter defense, pulling off a road win 93-85.

1^st Quarter

On a set play, Bosh curls off a screen for the dunk down the lane to start out for Miami

Wade nearly turns it over in the post defended aggressively by Shumpert and Bosh picks it up for a lay in

Miami trying to attack early with the dribble drive, getting Bosh involved to score and distribute

Wade deflects a pass that starts a fastbreak, resulting in an alley-oop from Wade to James

Smooth pull-up on the secondary break by Wade, from the right wing using the glass

Miami contesting every Knicks’ shot; James scores from right wing spot on iso over Fields

James steals a pass by Fields and in what looks like a replay, Wade off the glass from the right wing for 2

Bosh helps James defensively, forcing Anthony to throw up a deep 3 for a shot-clock violation

Miller hustles for an offensive rebound; James from the elbow drops it off to Wade at the rim in traffic

Anthony guarded tightly by James, with a second defender coming every time he dribbles

Bosh picks up his dribble and turns it over by holding the ball too long, fastbreak dunk for Anthony

James sets a good screen at the baseline, Wade cuts off it to the rim for a left-handed finish

James passes out of a strong double-team on the baseline; hits Battier underneath who kicks it out to Chalmers for the corner 3

Heat late on rotation; they’re double-teaming the ball-handler on pick & rolls; Knicks swing the ball around the horn to Smith for a couple treys

Out of a timeout, Miller drains a right wing 3; a couple plays later James hits a 3 from the same spot

Anthony crosses over Battier at the top for a deep 2; forces him into a tough shot to end the quarter

Stats:

Miami – Wade 12 points

New York – Anthony 14 points

Apr 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Miami Heat power forward Chris Bosh (1) reacts after scoring during the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Miami won 93-85. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

2nd Quarter

First points come 2 minutes into the quarter: Smith hits Jeffries in the paint for the dunk

Wade charges through Jeffries; leading up to that he looked complacent with James on the bench

Bosh closes out on Novak, resulting in a traveling violation (too many steps)

Battier with a left-hand hook over Novak; Shumpert was all over that possession with help defense

Wade picks up another offensive foul, Shumpert stuck with him off a screen and he pushed off

Jones can’t help Bosh on a pick, Novak connects on a 3 and then Jones misses an open corner 3

Wade couldn’t keep Anthony in front of him, Bosh late on the help for a layup by Anthony

Heat only scores 2 points with half the 2^nd quarter remaining; James finally comes back in

Heat collapse on Anthony in the paint, leaving Shumpert open in the corner for another 3

Beautiful behind-the-back pass by Wade when double-teamed, hits bosh for a reverse lay in

Miami fails to get back on defense and Smith goes coast to coast for an easy lay-up (Wade upset)

Acrobatic reverse lay in by James on an inbounds play

On a pick & roll Bosh can’t recover and James doesn’t help resulting in a Chandler slam

Bosh falls asleep on the weakside, Anthony cross court pass to Chandler under the hoop for a dunk

James drains a tough fade-away from the top over Anthony (Anthony having a strong performance)

Anthony pulls-up left wing over Battier for a deep 2 then again on the right wing on the next play

Wade penetrates and dishes to Jones in the corner, he hits from downtown

James to the rack and draws a foul, splitting free throws; on the miss, Heat grab 2 offensive boards and James gets fouled again and splits 2 more from the line

Stats:

(46) Miami – James 15 points, 7 rebounds; Wade 14 points

(44) New York – Anthony 22 points, 7 rebounds

Apr 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) interacts with a fan during the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Miami won 93-85. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

3rd Quarter

Miami opens up the half with ball movement; Bosh isolation bucket from the wing over Chandler

James with an iso/fade away from the left baseline over Davis; James slow to get up holding his ankle

Anthony with a tough drive past James and over Bosh; Miami settling for jumpers

James with a steal on the weakside, Wade heads to the line and sinks both free throws

Fouls on Wade and Bosh off the ball; James caught up on a Chandler pick, Anthony hits the trey

Bosh drains an elbow shot; Knicks going to Fields with Haslem defending, 1 lay-up and 1 miss

Offense gets stagnant, James takes the shot clock down and his pass deflected out of bounds

On the inbounds James hoists up a contested three; iso on Anthony who strips the ball away

Miami halts a New York fastbreak and Wade scores from the left block followed by a charge on James

James at the top hits Wade in the paint for a two-hand jam; Wade gets an offensive rebound

James detours another NY fastbreak; penetrates and draws a foul, knocking both shots down

Battier drives baseline and picks up a foul, splitting free throws; Miami contesting every Knicks shot

Heat defense focuses on Anthony heavily cheating on the weakside, Anthony to Chandler for a dunk

Joel Anthony hustles on the offensive glass and gets a put-back

Anthony drives on Battier and Joel Anthony for a tough layup

James to the line, flagrant foul on Chandler; James went to the rack and Chandler got him hard on the head and shoulders

Joel Anthony gives a hard foul to Chandler, who is shaken up from hyperextending his knee (he’s fine)

Chandler splits foul shots and gets the offensive rebound, Smith knocks down a 3 over Joel Anthony

James glides by Anthony down the left wing to the whole and finishes over Chandler with a layup

Battier all over Anthony but he fouls him on a 3; James Jones gets a pair of free throws

Jeffries working hard for an offensive rebound scrapping on the ground, Anthony gets a layup

Smith drains a 3-pointer, Knicks end the quarter on a 7-2 run

Stats:

(71) Miami – James 21 points; Wade 20 points

(68) New York – Anthony 35 points

Apr 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks shooting guard J.R. Smith (8) drives to the basket during the fourth quarter against the Miami Heat at Madison Square Garden. Miami won 93-85. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

4th Quarter

Novak opens the final quarter with a 3 from the top

Shumpert picks Wade’s pocket on back-to-back plays, dropping it off to Jeffries for a layup on the break

Bosh eludes pressure & drives from the left corner for a reverse layup; Heat force a shot-clock violation

Smith defending Wade, outhustles Wade for the ball and saves it from going out; Smith misses a lyup but Anthony tips it back in

Bosh dribbles from the left elbow down the lane for the two-hand flush

Chalmers deflects a pass for a turnover; Battier misses a corner 3 then fouls Anthony who hits 2 foul shots

Smith pokes the ball out of Wade’s hands and gets an easy dunk; Wade answers with an acrobatic layup

Bosh finishes at the hoop out of a pick & roll with Chalmers

James contest Anthony but turns it over on the other end; Heat playing great defense

Bosh securing defensive rebounds and gets a block; Wade acrobatic shot in the paint

Joel Anthony almost blocks Chandler on a dunk but picks up a foul resulting in splits free throws

James drives and gets called for a charge, looked like a block on Chandler

James and Anthony fighting for position, James misses a jumper but Joel Anthony puts it back

James good defense on Anthony who misses a fade away 3; Wade hits over Chandler from left wing

James pulls up from the right wing for a jumper; 11 point turn-around in favor of the Heat

Davis to a wide open Chandler underneath for a jam; Chalmers answers with a baseline drive for a lay in

James Jones draws a charge on Davis; James/Anthony exchange misses

Wade using a screen to get around Shumpert then hesitates into a floater over Chandler on the left block

James fades away over Shumpert at the left wing, appears to be the dagger (18-3 Heat run)

Anthony splits a couple attempts from downtown; wade dribbles out the clock to end the game on a 18-6 run for the win

Stats:

(93) Miami – James 29 pts, 10 rebounds; Wade 28 pts, 9 rebounds, 4 assists; Bosh 16 pts, 14 reb

(85) New York – Anthony 42 pts, 9 reb, 5 assists; Smith 16 pts, 7 reb, 3 steals

Apr 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks guard Iman Shumpert (21) defends Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) during the third quarter at Madison Square Garden. Miami won 93-85. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

Feb. 23, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) drives to the basket past New York Knicks small forward Carmelo Anthony (7) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Prelude to a 7-game series?

Miami will take their talent to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks. If the playoffs started today, these two would clash in the first round in a 2nd vs. 7th seed matchup. So, will this game indicate what would happen in a series? Doubtful, but it’s not because Amare Stoudemire is sidelined. And Jeremy Lin won’t be healthy to suit up until an Eastern Conference Finals matchup, if New York makes it that far. Nor does it derive from which players are in the lineup for Miami.

Heat fans would love to see their team rebound from a tough week in which they lost to the Bulls and Celtics. More than that, this squad is struggling to win games against teams with a winning record. Since the All-Star break Miami has lost to: Jazz, Lakers, Pacers twice, Celtics twice, and Bulls twice. They also split against the Orlando, Philadelphia, and OKC, with a mediocre 13-10 record. Miami hopefuls remain optimistic, because this team finished with the 2nd seed last year and beat the Bulls in 5 games to reach the finals.

LeBron James: ”We need to play well because we haven’t played well after the break on the road,” said MVP candidate  LeBron James. “I don’t know if it’s a statement game, but we want to play better than we have on the road. It’s a good place to play knowing more than likely we’ll play them in the first round.”

Feb. 23, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; New York Knicks small forward Carmelo Anthony (7) is pressured by Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

As for their counterpart, the big apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. The Knicks are also 13-10 since the break, but have played at a higher level, winning 13 of their last 17 games. Carmelo Anthony has been as hot as anyone in basketball, flourishing in the absence of Amare Stoudemire, and the Knicks have played intense defense since coach Mike Woodson took over. They have momentum heading into this game, but they are still working to gel and fighting for their playoff lives. Will this offense continue to roll when Stoudemire returns in the postseason?

“We want to protect our home court,” Carmelo Anthony said. “We want to make this one of the toughest places to come in and play and come in and win, and as of late we’ve been doing that and we want to keep that going. It’s another big game for us, another exciting game. It’ll be fun, the Garden will be rocking. Everybody will be watching. What better game to play in then Sunday against Miami?”

It may be a playoff series preview, but expect to see a vanilla gameplan so they don’t tip their hand if they were to lock up in the first round. Miami will bring an effort to turn their slump around, and New York needs to punch their postseason ticket because they are in a tight race with Philadelphia and Milwaukee for the last two spots. Nonetheless, this will be an exciting game with a playoff feel in the Garden.