Spurs Too Much To Handle For Heat In Game One

The Heat was on in the opener of the NBA Finals, and the Heat took on a whole new meaning in this ballgame. A fault in the air conditioning system at the AT&T Center in San Antonio caused problems on the court in game one of the finals, leaving the temperatures on the court rising up to close to 90 degrees during the game. Those temperature caused problems for players on both teams, but the Spurs handled the conditions, and the Miami Heat, which got a little help when a suffering LeBron James couldn't make it to the finish. All things thrown into the mix, the Spurs pulled away with a 110-95 win, to take Game One of the finals.

The Spurs said an electrical failure for the power that runs the air-conditioning system had occurred. They apologized for the inconvenience but also seemed to poke fun at it, playing songs with "hot" in the lyrics over the sound system. Fans were trying to cool themselves on the hot night, a reminder of what it was like in the old Boston Garden when the Celtics and Lakers got together. So yeah, the Heat in the building was playing a big factor on this basketball game, for not just the Heat but the Spurs as well.

The AC not working seemed to have more of an impact on the Heat than it did the Spurs. Sure King James finished with 25 points but played only 33 minutes, having to leave the game early because of cramps. Going into the series, King James has had a big impact for the Heat in the playoffs, almost carrying them to the finals on his back. But on this night, he got the Heat going, but once he left the game, the Heat began to wilt, allowing the Spurs to pull away with the game.

Lebron came out with 3:59 left to go in the ball game, just after hitting a layup, the cap of his 25 point night. Once Lebron hit the last shot, he couldn't move his left leg, thus forcing him to come out of the game. James tried to go back into the ballgame, but Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra told him not to move from the bench cause he couldn't even move. I'm sure this was something Lebron was dealing with the entire night, but for some reason I felt the Heat medical staff couldn't seem to figure out how to fix it. Cramps is a tough thing to deal with, but for some reason the Heat training staff weren't able to get a jump on it around halftime, which lead to Lebron being forced out of the game.

Once the King left, the Spurs really took over. When Lebron left the game, the Heat were trailing by two points. Afterwards, the Spurs outscored Miami by 13 points to take away the victory. Sure Lebron had a big night, and yes he got help from Dwyane Wade (19 points), Chris Bosh (18 points), Ray Allen (16 points)and even Rashard Lewis (10 points). But once Lebron came out of the game, and the Heat's unquestioned leader came off the court, it really seemed the Heat lost their heart. San Antonio took full advantage, all of which started when Danny Green hit a 3-pointer to trigger what became a 16-3 run to end the game. This was all coming after the Heat really started to fold late.

San Antonio started the game off a little sloppy, turning the ball over nine times, which is very rare for how good this Spurs basketball team is. Not only that, but the Spurs managed only 20 points in the 3rd quarter, as they had been outplayed by the Heat, as Miami held the 78-76 lead going. San Antonio came back strong in the final quarter, pulling away with the victory. With the win, the Spurs ended up extending their NBA-record streak to eight straight home playoff wins by 15 or more points

Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Tony Parker added 19 points and Manu Ginobili finished with 16 points and 11 assists for San Antonio, which improved to 10-1 at home in the playoffs.

Heading into game two, things may look a little better for the Heat. Game Two is on Sunday, which will in all likelyhood have cooler, more comfortable conditions for the Heat to try and pull even in the series. Tipoff is set for 9PM Sunday night!