Indiana Pacers' balance, crowd power team to big win over Miami Heat - MiamiHerald.com

INDIANAPOLIS -- With their yellow “Gold Swagger” shirts and “Beat the Heat!” chants, the Indiana Pacers’ faithful came to Bankers Life Fieldhouse ready to rock in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Pacers did not disappoint, taking a 2-1 series lead by beating the Chris Bosh-less Miami Heat, 94-75.

“It was the best atmosphere in my four years here,” Pacers center Roy Hibbert said.

The Pacers did it with a balanced scoring attack. Pacers point guard George Hill led the way with 20 points and five assists, including a crucial nine-point second quarter to keep the game close at halftime.

Hill was followed closely behind by Roy Hibbert with 19 points and 18 rebounds. Danny Granger â€" who came alive offensively for the first time in the series â€" scored 17 and David West added 14.

“This is who we’ve been all year,” Pacers head coach Frank Vogel said.

Appropriately, it was Granger who got the crowd going early by knocking down a three-pointer from the left corner to give the Pacers a 3-0 lead. The shot also started an 11-2 Pacers’ run to open the game.

The Heat did not allow the Pacers to run away in the first half, though. Led by LeBron James’ 11 and Mario Chalmers’ eight first-quarter points, the Heat regained the advantage by rattling off a 22-4 run to end the opening period. “After that hole we dug ourselves,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, “we got off to a good start in the first half.”

Chalmers’ ability to get into the lane early was especially important for the Heat, as they have had trouble finding scoring in the series from anybody whose name isn’t James or Dwyane Wade. Chalmers was the game’s leading score on the night with 25 points after shooting a combined 2 for 13 from the field during the first two games of the series.

But Chalmers’ hot hand was negated by Wade’s ineffectiveness. He finished the game with five points, well below his average of 22.6 per game in the first seven playoff contests.

After a 43-43 halftime score, it was the third quarter that ultimately made the difference, with the Pacers outscoring the Heat 26-12. Granger scored 10 of those points, including 2 of 3 from three-point range. He and Hill both knocked down 3 three-pointers in the game.

The Pacers made it look easy the rest of the way, as Wade and James finished the game looking on from the bench.

“We definitely feel like we can win this series,” Vogel said.