Today at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC, the Eastern Conference Finals between the top-seeded Indiana Pacers and No. 2 seeded Miami Heat will tip off. Live stream the highly anticipated matchup free by clicking this link; Heat fans can listen to the action on 790 The Ticket, while Pacers fans may hear the radio broadcast on 1070 The Fan.
While Indiana's been much maligned for the past few months because of their suddenly middling play, they've managed to play Miami tough even during their slump. LeBron James knows the reason for that.
"Two best teams in the Eastern Conference. It's that simple," James said. "I mean both teams defend at a high level, both teams share the ball, both teams get into the paint, both teams have a desire to win, so that's why it's been equal."
The Pacers have had a difficult road to these East Finals, nearly getting eliminated in Round 1 by the No. 8 Atlanta Hawks, then relapsing a few times vs. the Washington Wizards. The Heat have pretty much cruised, losing just one game in the first two series, making them the rare road favorite in the series.
"I think we like being the underdogs," Lance Stephenson said. "We like when everybody is talking about us. I think it makes our game a little bit better. It makes us want to go out and play harder, so I like being the underdog and everybody talking about us and trying to bring us down but we stay together as a unit, stay poised in the locker room. It just makes us stronger."
The key battle could be Miami's sweet-shooting "center" Chris Bosh vs. the massive Roy Hibbert. Bosh has been lighting it up from 3-point range this postseason, and he hopes to draw a resurgent Hibbert away from the basket where his presence would hinder James and Heat guard Dwyane Wade.
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