<div align="center"> </div> Game: <font color="red"><u>Miami Heat (16-7)</u></font> @ <font color="teal"><u>Washington Wizards (12-7)</u></font> Date: Monday 12/15/04 Time: 7:00pm EST Channel: NBALP, Sunshine Network (Florida), CSN (North Carolina) Live Boxscore: <div align="center"><font color="red"><u>Miami Heat Starting Lineup</u></font><font size="1"> Head Coach Stan Van Gundy Backcourt PG-Damon Jones SG-Dwyane Wade Frontcourt SF-Eddie Jones PF-Udonis Haslem C-Shaquille O'Neal 6th Man Rasual Butler</div></font> <div align="center"><font color="teal"><u>Washington Wizards Starting Lineup</u></font><font size="1"> Head Coach Eddie Jordan Backcourt PG-Gilbert Arenas SG-Larry Hughes Frontcourt SF-Antawn Jamison PF-Jared Jeffries C-Brendan Haywood 6th Man Jarvis Hayes</font></div> <div align="center"><font color="Red">Heat Keys to the Game</font></div> <ul>[*]Contain Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison: A little known fact is Shaq and Wade are tied as the number #1 highes scoring duo in the East with Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison with 44ppg. Arenas and Jamison are the biggest offensive weapons for the Wizards and they account for most of the team's FGAs. If the Heat want to win this game they need to try and keep the ball away from these two and make em take a tough shot if they do get the ball. [*]Transition Defense: The Wizards are gonna try and push the tempo against the Heat and will look to run the floors for easy buckets. Miami must get back on transition and force the Wizards to play a half court set where they have a better chance of containing the Wizards. [*]Protect the Perimeter: The Wizards have shooters that can light it up from downtown and will be looking to try and turn this into a 3pt shooting contest at times. The fact that the Heat have the worst opp 3PT% doesn't help their cause. If the Heat don't protect the perimeter they're gonna have a hard time keeping a lead and/or getting back in the game if they are down. [*]Stay out of foul trouble while playing agressively: This key is extremely important simply because the Wizards are a division rival and the Heat must win this game. If they don't win this game they lose the division lead and give it up to Washington and possibly go behind the Magic. Remember, Division games count as two: the one that you win and the one that they lose. [*]Attack the glass/Keep em off the Glass: I'm still not convinced Miami has fixed their defensive rebounding issue and need to improve on it. The Wizards front court combine to average 9 offensive rebounds and 15.3 as a team. They also have a 2 offensive rebound differential against their opponents. The Heat frontcourt average only 6 offensive rebounds and 10 as a team. They also get out rebounded offensively by their opponents by 1. If they Heat don't keep em off the glass they are going to get easy second chance points and it can eventually cost them the game.[/list] Note: Since the Heat and Wizards have back-to-back games I just used the same preview. Note: The Heat said that taking Wade out for the 2nd half of the first game against the Wizards was only precautionary. Dwyane Wade is expected to play tonight against the Wizards although Shaq says that Wade should be in no rush to return.
