For the third time in as many games, the Cavs found themselves faced off against one of the league’s brightest stars. So why have the Cavs been able to emerge from this stretch 3-0? Well, having the league’s very brightest star doesn’t hurt.

The first half of this game, more specifically the second quarter, was one of the best back-and-forth battles you will ever see.

Dwyane Wade started off the game with the upper hand, feeding off of the energy of the home crowd to put up 13 points on four-of-six shooting in the first 12 minutes of the contest.

The Cavs were not focused on LeBron to begin the game. James only got two points on four shots in the first quarter, but Shaquille O’Neal took it to his former team with eight quick points.

After that, we saw some kind of battle.

From the 7:03 mark to the 1:35 mark in this period, only James and Wade scored excluding one occasion when Big Z made a lay-up.

LeBron started off the quarter forcing the issue at the basket, getting his Cavs back into the game after finishing the first down 34-24. On seven of nine possessions in that stretch, James got a lay-up, slammed it home, or went to the free throw line, using his speed and explosiveness in transition to put a big dent in the Miami lead and even give the Cavs a lead at one point.

With Dwyane Wade anticipating a lay-up on a James fastbreak, Wade went up to block the shot, but LeBron finished with a monster slam and the foul, as pictured above.

That play ignited Wade to get things going. Other than three free throws, Wade was absent to this point, watching his teammates miss 12 field goals in a row before taking control of the offense.

With the Heat down 39-38, Flash hit a 19-foot jumper with 3:38 left in the half to put Miami back up. After LeBron missed two free throws, Wade came back down the court and nailed a deep three with the foul (though he missed the freebie).

Not to be outdone, LeBron nailed a three to put Cleveland back within one. Then Wade hit a jumper. Then, after he missed a three that was rebounded by Jamario Moon, LeBron hit a jumper.

After their teammates exchanged a few baskets, the Wade/LeBron portion of the game resumed at the 29 second mark when Wade hit a nine-foot runner in the lane in transition with the foul (though, again he would miss the free throw). But off that miss, Wade got the rebound and, to save it from going out, slung it off the Cavs to retain possession. Taking advantage of the extra possession, D-Wade nailed another three.

But, of course, LeBron pushed the pace up the court and drained a very deep three pull the Cavs within four. Wade would attempt a 54-footer at the buzzer but, somewhat shockingly, it didn’t fall.

Their first half lines:

Wade – 30 points, 9-13 field goals, 3-4 three’s, 9-14 free throws, 5 rebounds, 3 assists

James – 22 points, 7-14 field goals, 2-5 three’s, 6-11 free throws, 2 rebounds, 2 assists

Everything pointed to a thrilling second half that would be one for the ages.

That assumption was right, to an extent, but it wasn’t what I wanted. In the third quarter, LeBron got four points and Wade got none. And, even in the final period, it was only until the final minute that they both regained a bit of confidence.

After Udonis Haslem hit a running hook in the lane with a minute left in the game that put the Heat up 91-90, several interesting plays ensued. With 41 seconds left, LeBron launched a hero three that hit back rim and led to a pair of D-Wade free throws after Boobie Gibson fouled him.

The problem with Wade on the line with a chance to make it a three point game. As I coin the term, he pulled a Pau Gasol, missing both. Another chance for LeBron.

James drew Wade on defense, took him into the post and, after being denied an inside pass and a kick out to the perimeter, tried to put in a spinning lay-up, which was denied and stolen by Wade.

So he redeemed himself, right? Unfortunately for the Heat, that play wouldn’t save it for them. On the same possession, with the shot clock only three seconds off from the game clock, Mike Brown told his guys not to foul. With a chance to run a play, Wade tried to make a behind-the-back pass to Udonis Haslem, which was read perfectly by James. LeBron poked it away, gained control of the ball, and was fouled hard by Wade at the other end, sending him to the ground for a few minutes.

When James got up, he promptly nailed both free throws. But there was still 4.1 seconds left, Wade had one more shot to redeem himself.

Off the inbounds, Wade dribbled a couple of feet inside the arc with James on him and shot a flat pull-up J that hit back iron.

James finished with 32 points on nine-of-23 shooting, but made his difference at the free throw stripe, sinking 12-of-17 and making up for his early misses when it mattered most. LeBron did struggle again from behind-the-arc, going two-for-nine, but all I will remember is that ridiculous 28-footer after he stopped on a dime. The Akron Hammer added nine rebounds and four assists to his statline.

Wade finished with just 32 after getting 30 in the first half. Flash simply ran out of energy, which showed on that final shot of the game that came out with no arc. His 32 were accompanied by 10 boards, five dimes and a trio of steals.This is a good barometer game to show how good the Western Conference is. Yeah, it was in Memphis, but there is not a home court advantage there to speak of.

Dwight Howard went off for 27 points on nine-of-14 shooting from the field and nine-of-11 shooting from the line with 15 rebounds and six blocks, but that wasn’t enough to overcome the Grizzlies.

Zach Randolph had 23 points and 19 rebounds, O.J. Mayo had 20 points, and Marc Gasol had 19 points, eight rebounds, four steals, three blocks and three assists.With Orlando losing, the Hawks took over third place overall in the East and first place in the Southeastern Division by a game.

Josh Smith had 22 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and four blocks to lead the Hawks while Carl Landry had 16 points off the bench to lead Houston.Despite a very good performance by Goran Dragic, the Jazz, led by Wesley Matthews down the stretch, pulled out a nice win at home that sends Phoenix further south in the standings.

Dragic had a career high 32 points on 10-of-13 shooting, knocking down six-of-seven three’s off the bench.

Matthews finished with 21 points, five assists, and four rebounds and made several key shots and defensive plays in crunch time to help out the Jazz. Deron Williams, who hit a back-breaking three with two minutes to go, had 18 points and 11 assists. Carlos Boozer had one of the best games of his career, knocking down seven of his 10 shots for 21 points while also pulling down 20 rebounds.Without Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups stepped up and scored 27 p0ints, assisted on 11 baskets and pulled down six rebounds to fight off the hot Bobcats. Aaron Afflalo played a big part in the win, too, hitting nine of his 11 field goal attempts and six-of-seven three’s for 24 points.

Stephen Jackson led the Bobcats with 22 points.Kendrick Perkins had a monster game scoring nine points with 15 rebounds and two blocks, holding Chris Kaman to just 10 points. Rajon Rondo added 16 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and four steals while Paul Pierce had 22 points.

Eric Gordon was out again for the Clips.The Pacers split the second half of a home and home with the Sixers thanks to 26 points, eight rebounds and four assists from Danny Granger.

Andre Iguodala had 22 points  for Philly.Joakim Noah had a key putback and clutch free throws late to help Chicago pull of their third road victory in a row, all coming against good teams (Suns, Rockets, Spurs).

Derrick Rose had another great game, scoring 27 points with six assists. Rose took advantage of Tim Duncan’s age on the pick-and-roll as he took him to the whole several times. Tony Parker had 20 and eight for the Spurs.Chris Paul hit the go-ahead jumper with 3.8 seconds left in the game and Jerryd Bayles missed an identical jumper for Portland at the buzzer to give New Orleans a nice win over a good team even though Brandon Roy was out.

CP3 had a beast game, scoring 24 points with 12 assists, seven rebounds and five steals. I’ll have an article on the Hornets trade up tomorrow.

LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 16 points and six rebounds.