MIAMI (AP) -- Even with a foul to give in the final seconds,
Baron Davis and the New Orleans Hornets failed to stop Dwyane Wade.
The Miami Heat rookie drove around a gimpy Davis and sank a
7-foot jumper with 1.3 seconds left to beat the Hornets 81-79 in
Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series Sunday night.
With the game tied and 11 seconds left, Wade went to work from
the point following a timeout. Davis knew he could foul but was
slowed by a sore left ankle that sidelined him for nine games late
in the regular season.
"I went out too far on the floor," Davis said. "He got me
leaning, and I wasn't able to recover."
Once past Davis and in the lane, Wade threw up his shot over
6-foot-11 Jamaal Magloire.
"I've always been the kind of person who likes to take the
shot," Wade said.
Caron Butler tipped the Hornets' ensuing inbounds pass to seal
the win. Game 2 in the best-of-seven series will be Wednesday in
Miami, where the Heat have 13 wins in a row.
The city's first playoff game since 2001 drew a Heat
postseason-record crowd of 20,102, with most fans clad in black.
The Heat made the mood festive rather than funereal, even though
they missed 14 consecutive shots in the second quarter to fall
behind by 10 points, then blew a 12-point lead with 7{ minutes
left.
With the Hornets hobbled, the Heat outscored them 18-0 on fast
breaks. Davis played 36 minutes on his sore ankle.
"It limited me a lot -- my movement, my drives to the basket and
on defense," he said.
He limped at times and went to the locker room in the first
quarter for retaping. He scored 17 points but had six turnovers and
missed 11 of 15 shots.
Reserve guard Darrell Armstrong, who aggravated his sprained
right ankle in practice Saturday, failed to score in 16 minutes.
Forward Jamal Mashburn, left off the Hornets' playoff roster
because of knee trouble, watched from the bench in a coat and tie.
"If we were 100 percent, it would definitely be a different
outcome," swingman Steve Smith said.
As it was, the Hornets nearly pulled out a victory. They trailed
77-65 midway through the fourth period, then rallied to tie the
game on P.J. Brown's jumper with 54 seconds left.
"We wanted to get this one real bad," Davis said. "But it's
just one game in the series."
Miami managed to match the bigger Hornets in rebounds with 51.
Defense helped too, with the Heat limiting All-Star center Magloire
to 14 points on 5-for-14 shooting.
"I feel real bad about how I did," Magloire said. "I wasn't
able to get into the flow."
Odom, a five-year veteran making his postseason debut, had 17
points and 11 rebounds but also seven turnovers.
Wade scored 21 points, including the biggest basket.
"We've been calling him the problem child all year," teammate
Udonis Haslem said. "He creates problems for anybody that has to
guard him."
The Heat won even though Eddie Jones and Brian Grant are their
only players with significant postseason experience, while 10
Hornets have been there before.
"We have a little playoff experience now," Wade said.<
^Notes: Rafer Alston, who ended the regular season with a streak
of at least one 3-pointer in 48 consecutive games, sank his first
of the playoffs to put Miami ahead 65-59. ... Wade missed six shots
in a row in the second quarter. ... Butler tied a Heat playoff
record with five steals. ... The Hornets stayed in Miami between
Games 1 and 2 and planned to practice Monday at the University of
Miami.