Heat run streak to 24 the extremely hard way

Miami overcomes huge 27-point deficit as James scores 25 in win

Miami's winning streak was in danger of disappearing - in Cleveland, of all places.

But LeBron James wouldn't give up.

"That guy right there doesn't want to lose in this building," teammate Dwayne Wade said, nodding toward James, who left many angry Cavaliers fans behind when he bolted for Miami as a free agent three years ago. "Not tonight."

James scored 25 points as the Heat overcame a 27-point deficit in the third quarter and won their 24th straight game, 98-95 over the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night to extend the second-longest winning streak in NBA history.

The Heat are within nine games of matching the record of 33 consecutive wins held by the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers. Once believed to be untouchable, the mark is now within reach.

James and his teammates have insisted the record isn't one of their goals, and for more than 30 minutes the defending champion seemed disinterested and on the verge of losing for the first time since Feb 1. Miami trailed 67-40 with 7:44 left in the third quarter.

But behind the irrepressible James, who added 12 rebounds and 10 assists in 42 minutes, the Heat inched closer to history and matched the NBA's biggest comeback this season, according to STATS.

"This was one of the most bizarre, unique days of my life with everything that happened," said James, referring to a homecoming in which a fan ran onto the floor and the opening tip was delayed 35 minutes by a leaky scoreboard. "It also was one of the best comebacks I've ever been a part of."

James had 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals in the fourth as Miami rallied to win for the second game in a row. The Heat were down 17 points - 13 in the fourth quarter - and stormed back to beat Boston 105-103 on Monday and surpass the 2007-08 Houston Rockets for the second-longest streak in NBA history.

"I knew there was a lot of time, so we never panicked," James said. "We were down 27 with 18 minutes left. That's a lifetime in basketball."

Although the Cavs were missing All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters and Anderson Varejao - their top three scorers - they pushed Miami to the limit.

It wasn't until James, playing his fourth game back in Cleveland since leaving, made two free throws with 4.7 seconds left that Miami could relax, but just a little. The Cavs had one last chance to tie it, but C.J. Miles was long with a 3-pointer in the final second, letting Miami off the hook.

Following the game, James stopped to sign a few autographs as he made his way to Miami's locker room. This was much tougher than he and the Heat could have imagined. The win also completed a five-game road trip, dubbed "The Reunion Tour" by James because Miami visited Wade's home in Milwaukee, Chris Bosh's former team in Toronto and Ray Allen's in Boston.

(China Daily 03/22/2013 page24)