http://www.nola.com/hornets/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1083413194244710.xml Hornets now the ones feeling the Heat N.O. falters late, faces elimination at home Sunday Saturday, May 01, 2004 By Jimmy Smith Staff writer MIAMI -- The hope was to come into AmericanAirlines Arena, sneak up behind the home-standing Heat and quietly dip into their collective piggy banks. Steal one. That was the goal. And for three quarters, the Hornets had their hands buried deep into the crevices of that sanctuary, on their way to heading back to New Orleans with an opportunity to close out its young opponent and advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals. As they left Friday night, the Hornets were counting fingers to see if the Heat had lopped off any as it slammed the lid on that piggy bank after Miami's 87-83 victory. The Heat holds a 3-2 series lead heading into Sunday afternoon's Game 6 at New Orleans Arena. "We had the game in our hands," Hornets forward P.J. Brown said. "All we had to do was stay solid and keep playing the game the way we did in the first three quarters. We just didn't do it." Searching for reasons how the Hornets allowed themselves to squander an 11-point lead, eight with 3:49 to go in the third quarter, all New Orleans had to do was look at the turnover line in the box score. It said 19, which the Heat converted into 20 points. Six of the 19 came in the fourth quarter. That more than offset a 48-35 Hornets rebounding edge, including 20 New Orleans offensive rebounds, and a game-high 33 points from Baron Davis. "We had some crucial turnovers down the stretch," Brown said. "We've got to be efficient and take care of the ball. Every possession is so crucial in the playoffs. When you get a close game like this on the road, you just can't have one. I know I had one. I think everybody might have had one going down the stretch. "It was tough. But even through all of that, we still had a chance." Until Miami rookie Dwyane Wade hit a 3-pointer from the right baseline as the 24-second shot clock expired to give the Heat an 83-80 lead with 54.4 seconds remaining. "It was more me catching it than shooting it," Wade said of the feed from Lamar Odom. That brought the game down to the frenetic final seconds when, in truth, the Hornets should have put it away at the outset of the fourth quarter. Leading by five as the quarter began, the Hornets' first possession ended with a bad pass by Darrell Armstrong, New Orleans' 14th turnover, which Miami converted on a follow-up shot by Caron Butler, his first points of the night. Just over a minute later, Wade's short hook shot, following a bad pass by Davis (turnover No. 15), capped a 6-0 Heat run at the fourth quarter's outset, giving Miami a 64-63 lead. "We never recovered from that," Hornets coach Tim Floyd said. The advantaged tarried back and forth -- there were 11 lead changes in all and seven ties -- until Wade's 3-pointer. Miami closed the lid for good during a Hornets possession following a timeout with 49.7 seconds to go that saw Armstrong have one 3-point attempt blocked by Butler and a follow-up go awry. "I had a little time on the second one and just shot it too quick," Armstrong said. "We were looking to go back to David Wesley from the pick and roll, but with all the help they use, they got a good trap on Baron and he had to throw it back to P.J. When P.J. caught it, he slid down and found me. Caron got to me quick, but the second one, I had a little time, but just shot it off the side of the backboard. "We were in control. We knew they'd make a run. It was just a tug-o-war in the fourth quarter." . . . . . . . Jimmy Smith can be reached at [email protected] or (504) 826-3814. --

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