The Heat got out to a strong start defensively, wrong-footing C-harlotte a bit by showing double-teams at center Al Jefferson in the post, with Hassan Whiteside roaming a bit more as a shot-deterring menace. On the other end, Miami continued to lean on the quickness advantage it had identified in the power forward matchup between veteran Luol Deng and rookie 7-footer Frank Kaminsky, with the former All-Star showing poise and touch both inside and out en route to seven points on 3-for-4 shooting in the opening frame.

The big key for Miami, though, was Dragic, who had struggled offensively for much of the series before locking into a rhythm with 12 points in the second half of a must-win Game 6. He carried that confidence and aggression over into the first half, cooking counterpart Kemba Walker off the dribble as he fought his way to the basket time and again, whether shot out of a cannon off screens — including many f-rom the Heat's wings, another adjustment that seemed to catch the Hornets by surprise — in the half-court or when showcasing his footwork and panache when unleashed in the open floor:

 

 

 

Heat Burning

Hassan Whiteside gets the clutch block on Al Jefferson and Goran Dragic converts with the sweet reverse on the other end.

"I just got more room to operate," Dragic told Burke on the court after the game. "I felt more comfortable. Our players, they trust me. Even when I miss a shot, they keep supporting me, and I got my rhythm."

"Man, that's the Goran Dragic we all love," Wade said. "He just puts so much pressure on the defense, and it allows other guys to just chill out [...] We want Goran to understand that when he's paying that special for us, we're a tough, tough team to beat."

Behind 17 first-half points f-rom Dragic on 7-for-12 shooting, relentless attacking that led to a 32-14 edge in points in the paint, and a defensive effort that held C-harlotte to 42.5 percent shooting, Miami carried a 54-42 lead into halftime. The deficit would've been even more dire if not for strong starts by Game 5 hero Courtney Lee (11 points, 5-for-5 shooting) and hobbled new father Nicolas Batum (eight points, five rebounds, two assists off the bench).

Coming out of intermission, the Hornets needed to get Walker going offensively, to find a way to slow Dragic, and to dislodge Whiteside enough to be able to penetrate the paint and generate good looks. They accomplished precisely none of those goals.

C-harlotte opened the third quarter playing smaller, with Batum taking Kaminsky's place in the starting lineup; Miami promptly got the ball right back to the front of the rim, with Whiteside finishing two dunks in just over a minute:

 

 

 

Whiteside Inside

Joe Johnson misses on the floater and Hassan Whiteside follows with the one-hand putback jam.

 

 

 

Timed Perfectly

Goran Dragic drives and lobs it up to Hassan Whiteside for the alley-oop finish.

The Hornets' downshifted, more shooting-heavy lineup couldn't meaningfully shift Miami's defense, as the Heat's guards continued to press up on Walker and the rest of C-harlotte's perimeter players, dissuading drives and making sure any Hornet foray toward the paint ended by meeting with Whiteside, whose presence had C-harlotte so shaken as to scarcely even look toward the basket with him in the neighborhood, and whose shot-blocking justified that choice when a Hornet actually did get inside:

 

 

 

Obliteration

Hassan Whiteside flies high to get the close-out block on Cody Zeller's shot attempt.

The Heat opened up the third on an 11-2 run, holding the Hornets scoreless for nearly four minutes to push their lead to 21. The game had escaped C-harlotte's grasp — every Hornets possession felt rushed and unsure, every missed shot increased the volume of the crowd and got the Heat out in transition, and nearly every Miami trip seemed to end right at the front of the rim:

 

 

 

Dragic Above The Rim

Goran Dragic flies in for the rare fast break jam.

 

 

 

Dragic Steps Through

Goran Dragic drives through traffic and steps in past his defender for the easy layup.

The Hornets were in quicksand, every move plunging them deeper and deeper, and extending the Heat lead. Miami kept pouring it on, fueled by Dragic's continued persistence in pushing the pace, supplementary shotmaking f-rom Deng, Wade and Joe Johnson, and a suffocating defensive effort at both the point of attack and the rim. Just past the midpoint of the third, Miami led by 28; by the end of a 29-11 third quarter, the advantage was 30, and all that was left to determine was the final margin.

Deng capped a strong series with 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting, eight rebounds and four assists. Whiteside posted his fifth double-double of Round 1, with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Wade chipped in 12 points and six boards, and reserve Gerald Green added 16 points on 7-for-16 shooting off the Heat bench.

Walker, who finished second in Most Improved Player voting after a breakout year as the engine of the Hornets' offensive improvement, had a nightmarish close to the season on both ends, finishing with just nine points on 3-for-16 shooting, six assists and three turnovers in 36 minutes:

Kaminsky led the way with 12 points on 3-for-15 shooting for the Hornets, who shot just 32.1 percent f-rom the field and managed only 31 points after halftime.

C-harlotte heads home after a successful regular season capped by a horrendously disappointing ending. The Heat move on to Round 2 to face the winner of Sunday's other Game 7, between the second-seeded Toronto Raptors and the seventh-seeded Indiana Pacers.

"I'm proud of this team, and I knew tonight would be a great moment for these guys," Wade said after the game. "I felt that we was going to win this game. I knew that our energy and our crowd was going to be enough, and we was going to be prepared, and I was just thinking about how these guys were going to feel after playing a Game 7."

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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him atdevine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!

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