LeBron wakes up to push Knicks closer to exit door

NEW YORK (Reuters) - LeBron James woke from a third-quarter slumber to lead the visiting Miami Heat to an 87-70 thumping of the New York Knicks on Thursday and a commanding 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series.

Miami dealt the Knicks a record-setting 13th successive playoff defeat dating back to April 2001 and put themselves on the brink of reaching the second round. No NBA team has ever recovered from a 3-0 deficit in the playoffs.

James sat out the last seven-and-a-half minutes of the third quarter after picking up his fourth personal foul in a ferocious defensive struggle at Madison Square Garden that Miami led 58-56 going into the final quarter.

Two three-pointers and a follow-up from under the basket, all from James, powered the Heat to a 10-point lead after 89 seconds of the fourth quarter, which they blew out to 15 to put the game out of reach.

"I just wanted to make plays and help our team win," James said of his explosive return to the court.

James led the Heat with 32 points, including 17 in the final stanza, and Dwyane Wade added 20, with 10 in the third quarter to carry Miami in James's absence.

New father Chris Bosh, who left New York to be with his wife Adrienne in Miami for the birth of their child and returned just before the game, contributed nine points and 10 rebounds.

Before his fourth-quarter burst, James had a frustrating game, committing eight turnovers in an ugly offensive showing from both clubs as players had a hard time dealing with the clawing defense played.

STRUGGLING ANTHONY

"It was a good team win," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "Coaches like those kind of wins, when you are not necessarily playing well, and certain parts of the game were ugly."

Struggling even more was New York's premier scorer, Carmelo Anthony, who shot a woeful seven-of-23 from the floor to lead the losers with 22 points.

"They're loading up on him, they're doubling him and forcing him to take jump shots," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said about the pressure put on Anthony. "Their defense was awfully good. Got to give them credit."

The Knicks shot a miserable 31.9 percent from the floor, and James said the Heat's game ball went to forward Shane Battier for the job he did covering Anthony.

"Shane was our player of the game," James said about Battier, who did not score a point in more than 35 minutes of play. "He did a great job on Melo."

Miami dedicated the victory to their youngest fan, Jackson Bosh, who was born about 4 a.m. local time on Thursday.

"We dedicated the game to Jackson Bosh," James said. "Even if his eyes were closed, he was still watching his dad play at a high level."

The undermanned Knicks, playing without Amar'e Stoudemire who badly cut his left hand after hitting a fire extinguisher case in anger after New York's Game Two loss, must now sweep four games to advance against last year's NBA Finals runner-up.

Game Four will be played at the Garden on Sunday.

(Reporting By Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes/Ian Ransom)

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