Nets beat Heat in 2 OTs for 5th straight

Shaun Livingston was flying all over the court. LeBron James could only sit and watch.

Joe Johnson scored 32 points, Livingston helped Brooklyn dominate the second overtime after James fouled out, and the Nets beat the Miami Heat 104-95 on Friday night for their fifth straight victory.

Livingston had two baskets and two blocked shots in the second OT, finishing with 19 points, a career-high 11 rebounds and five assists over 51 minutes in a sensational effort while starting for injured Deron Williams.

The Nets followed the lead of a player who spent years revitalizing a career that was sidetracked by a horrific knee injury, jumping on the Heat early and fighting them off late.

"Gutsy. Gutsy," Kevin Garnett said. "I thought we fought for 48-plus minutes."

Paul Pierce scored 23 points but missed jumpers that could have won it at the end of regulation and the first overtime. Still, the Nets remained unbeaten in 2014, adding a victory over the two-time defending NBA champion to their recent wins over Oklahoma City and Golden State.

"It was huge," Livingston said. "We have obviously been playing better as of late. I think of the momentum that we were carrying into this game ... we are trying to ride that wave."

James had 36 points, seven rebounds and five assists, but fouled out on an offensive foul with 36 seconds left in the first overtime and the Heat trailing by two.

Miami pushed it to a second overtime without him, but it was all the Nets from there against a Heat team that was already missing Dwyane Wade and two other starters.

James was visibly frustrated with his teammates in the first half - he said he apologized at halftime for his attitude and body language. He was irate when Mirza Teletovic flagrantly fouled him, but nearly overcame all that to help Miami pull it out.

"We are a no-excuse team, but right now we have three starters that didn't play," James said. "Even though we have got a lot of depth, it is hard to make up for three starters being out."

Miami totaled six points in the overtimes, fewest ever in the shot clock era (since 1954-55) in a game that went at least two overtimes.

The Heat came up with the idea to wear nicknames on their jerseys and wanted another team to participate, and the Nets were selected.

So in place of the teams' regular jerseys were ones reading names such as King James and J. Shuttlesworth (for Allen's character, Jesus Shuttlesworth, in the film He Got Game).

The Nets wore their road black jerseys with Truth (Pierce) and Big Ticket (Garnett).

Gimmicks are nice but good games are even better, and the Heat and Nets delivered a great one.

"This was a playoff atmos-phere-type game," Pierce said. "You just felt the energy in the building."

(China Daily 01/12/2014 page11)