The Miami Heat looked beatable in the first half of Game 5 on Thursday night, as they were dominated inside and the Indiana Pacers took a lead into halftime as they tried to go for a 3-2 lead in the series, but that was short lived once the team came out of the locker room.
The Heat demolished the Pacers in the third quarter by outscoring them 30-13 and the Pacers ended up with just 35 points in the second half after winning out in the first half. LeBron James was fantastic during the third quarter and he either assisted or scored on 25 of 30 points to completely dominate. Following the loss Roy Hibbert wrote on Twitter that the team was sorry for the loss and that they will have to force a Game 7 to make up for it. The team is one game away from elimination with Game 6 coming on Saturday in Indiana and Hibbert said it's time for the team to "sack up."
Hibbert has been fantastic for the Pacers and Paul George did his best LeBron James impression while leading the team in scoring, rebounding and assists. Hibbert posted three straight double-doubles at one point and he has been the biggest force on the inside for the Pacers and since he dealt with foul trouble Miami was able to pull ahead. Hibbert ended up with 22 points and he had as many free throws as the rest of his team and he will need another solid performance in Game 6 for the team to force a Game 7.
Hibbert has proven to be one of the best big men in the league in this series and he has been killing it on the offensive boards, including in Game 4 when he had three in the fourth quarter. The Pacers play better when he is on the court and he had nearly 50 rebounds over the first four games, but that flipped in Game 5. The Heat have a size disadvantage and if Hibbert can exploit that in Game 6 like he did earlier in the series, they will have a better chance to win and force a Game 7.
Miami had some good adjustments on Hibbert and Miami finally got the better of the Pacers on second chance points in Game 5 after being dominated earlier in the series. The Pacers outrebounded the Heat, but it was only by one point and the Heat did a good job of shutting him down by throwing bodies at him in the paint. The team will try to close things out Saturday night in Indiana.
