Michael Beasley Complete Highlights vs Bobcats 09-03-10 [11 Points / 9 Rebounds] Description:CHARLOTTE (NBA.com exclusive) -- The old adage that defense wins championships may not hold true for the Charlotte Bobcats this season. However, their defense Tuesday might be what gets them to the playoffs.
Raymond Felton scored 13 second-half points as Charlotte erased a double-digit second half deficit and defeated the Miami Heat 83-78 Tuesday at Time Warner Cable Arena.
"It was a big win for us," Felton said. "To win at home and come back. The fans were great. The intensity in the building was amazing. We really needed this one."
With 20 games left to play, the victory gives Charlotte an important edge in the playoff race. The Bobcats are now 3-0 in the season series with Miami, which gives them the tiebreaker with their divisional foe.
As a result, Charlotte now sits in seventh place in the Eastern Conference in a virtual tie with Miami. The Chicago Bulls now fall a half-game behind both teams in ninth place after losing at home to the Utah Jazz.
"It was great to get a win over a team that we're fighting to get in front of in the playoffs," Gerald Wallace said. "Plus we were at home. It keeps the momentum going for us. We've got a nice stretch for us in March where we can put ourselves in a great position for a playoff run."
Miami quickly built a nine-point edge in the fourth quarter on a fadeaway jumper from Jermaine O'Neal. The Bobcats, however, were aggressive on defense and slowly chipped away at the lead.
"We played with a sense of urgency and found a way to win a tough game where we struggled offensively," Stephen Jackson said.
After the O'Neal basket the Bobcats limited to Miami to just 2-for-10 shooting over the final nine minutes of play.
"We defended great," Larry Brown said of his team's second-half defense. "We rebounded great, too. We have never defended better than that against a quality team."
Miami scored just 30 points in the second half after scoring 48 in the first half while Dwayne Wade was limited to 10 points on 3-for-11 shooting.
D.J. Augustin converted a four-point play to jump start Charlotte in the final period and scored all eight points in a run which pulled the Bobcats within a point.
Carlos Arroyo stopped the Charlotte run with a pull-up jumper to extend the Miami lead back to three, 74-71. The teams traded baskets until Felton catapulted Charlotte to the lead.
Felton sank a three from the right corner for the first Bobcats lead since the 6-4 mark of the opening period. Charlotte then went ahead for good on a basket from Tyrus Thomas.
"We showed up for the fight," Miami coach Erik Spoelsta said, "but we did not close the game well at all, certainly not offensively. We had too many empty possessions and gave them too many shots to take the lead."
Miami continued to dominate coming out of the break. Michael Beasley put the Heat up 13 on a driving dunk off a pass from Wade with 7:45 to play in the third.
The Bobcats made a run at the close of the third quarter. Charlotte cut the deficit to two points, 63-61, after a Tyson Chandler putback capped a 9-0 run. Miami snapped the run on an alley-oop putdown by Wade.
Miami appeared to be in control after the opening half with a 48-39 lead in which they controlled the tempo and the boards.
"This is just another game and we need to move on," Wade said. "We have a game tomorrow. We don't really have time to think about it. We have to go home and take care of business." Author:raul7wade3 Tags:miami, heat, jh, productions, raul7wade3, 2008, 2009, playoffs, dwyane, wade, udonis, haslem, michael, beasley, daequan, cook, mario, chalmers, joel, anthony, alonzo, mourning, ceremony, jersey, 33, olympics, kobe, bryant, lebron, james, carmelo, carlos, boozer, chris, paul, atlanta, hawks, los, angeles, lakers, all, star, game, weekend, east, west, mixmaking, editing, celtics, champions, mixtape, music, olympiacos, magloire Duration:49 seconds View count:382
