BOSTON, May 9 (Reuters) - LeBron James's early exit from the NBA playoffs a year ago at the hands of the Celtics was a sore point with the seven-time All-Star.
Back in Boston in a different uniform, King James was desperate to turn the tables with the Miami Heat.
James did his part on Monday, leading all scorers with 35 points while
logging 14 rebounds as Miami beat Boston 98-90 in overtime, pushing the Celtics to the brink of elimination in their Eastern Conference semi-final series.
"It was a huge game. I looked at it as probably one of the biggest games of my career, knowing what was at stake," James told reporters after the game.
The Heat slowly reeled in Boston after trailing for most of the first three quarters. James and guard Dwyane Wade, Miami's biggest stars, spelled double trouble.
In the regular season, the two were the second and fourth leading average points scorers in the NBA. Wade had 28 points and nine rebounds Monday, and forward Chris Bosh chipped in with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra praised James. "He had some incredible plays in the fourth quarter and in overtime where it's not us helping him. It's nothing we can scheme or strategize. It's a competitive will with his talent."
A key moment was James's three-point jumper in front of the Boston bench to tie the game at 84-84 with two minutes to play, moments after the Celtics Ray Allen had drained his own potentially momentum-shifting three-pointer.
"It was a big shot. The shot clock was going down ... I went up and shot with confidence," James said.
The entire Miami unit, though, picked up its game after being "frantic" in the first quarter, Spoelstra said.
"So many of us have never had a win in this building. It's a tough place to win ... To be fair, they missed some open shots. But our activity generated some good karma for us."
The Heat return home to play Wednesday, leading 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.
"Wednesday night will be our greatest challenge," said Spoelstra. "We'll have to play with our very best effort to win."
Spoelstra acknowledged Miami's luck in squeaking out the win, especially after Boston's Paul Pierce had victory on his fingertips. Closely defended by James, Pierce missed a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer that sent the game into overtime.
"I had made a turnover. The only way for me to redeem myself was for me to stop Paul," James said.
KING JAMES
Now eight seasons into an already storied career, the player nicknamed "King James," twice voted the league's most valuable player, does not have a championship ring to show.
When his top-seeded Cavaliers were upset by the aging Celtics a year ago, James was savaged for lackluster play in his final games with Cleveland.
He joined Wade and the Heat as a free agent along with Bosh in the off-season, forging what he thought was his best chance to strike NBA gold.
James said he and Wade had formed a close partnership in their first season together.
"We understood that for us to be successful as a team we had to be leaders together, to demand more of each other," said Wade about merging their talents.
"We're the best of friends. Nothing that's said on the basketball court will hurt my feelings or his feelings. We both listen and we move on from it."
Back in Boston in a different uniform, King James was desperate to turn the tables with the Miami Heat.
James did his part on Monday, leading all scorers with 35 points while
logging 14 rebounds as Miami beat Boston 98-90 in overtime, pushing the Celtics to the brink of elimination in their Eastern Conference semi-final series.
"It was a huge game. I looked at it as probably one of the biggest games of my career, knowing what was at stake," James told reporters after the game.
The Heat slowly reeled in Boston after trailing for most of the first three quarters. James and guard Dwyane Wade, Miami's biggest stars, spelled double trouble.
In the regular season, the two were the second and fourth leading average points scorers in the NBA. Wade had 28 points and nine rebounds Monday, and forward Chris Bosh chipped in with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra praised James. "He had some incredible plays in the fourth quarter and in overtime where it's not us helping him. It's nothing we can scheme or strategize. It's a competitive will with his talent."
A key moment was James's three-point jumper in front of the Boston bench to tie the game at 84-84 with two minutes to play, moments after the Celtics Ray Allen had drained his own potentially momentum-shifting three-pointer.
"It was a big shot. The shot clock was going down ... I went up and shot with confidence," James said.
The entire Miami unit, though, picked up its game after being "frantic" in the first quarter, Spoelstra said.
"So many of us have never had a win in this building. It's a tough place to win ... To be fair, they missed some open shots. But our activity generated some good karma for us."
The Heat return home to play Wednesday, leading 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.
"Wednesday night will be our greatest challenge," said Spoelstra. "We'll have to play with our very best effort to win."
Spoelstra acknowledged Miami's luck in squeaking out the win, especially after Boston's Paul Pierce had victory on his fingertips. Closely defended by James, Pierce missed a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer that sent the game into overtime.
"I had made a turnover. The only way for me to redeem myself was for me to stop Paul," James said.
KING JAMES
Now eight seasons into an already storied career, the player nicknamed "King James," twice voted the league's most valuable player, does not have a championship ring to show.
When his top-seeded Cavaliers were upset by the aging Celtics a year ago, James was savaged for lackluster play in his final games with Cleveland.
He joined Wade and the Heat as a free agent along with Bosh in the off-season, forging what he thought was his best chance to strike NBA gold.
James said he and Wade had formed a close partnership in their first season together.
"We understood that for us to be successful as a team we had to be leaders together, to demand more of each other," said Wade about merging their talents.
"We're the best of friends. Nothing that's said on the basketball court will hurt my feelings or his feelings. We both listen and we move on from it."
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