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NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: PACERS v HEATMay 30, 2013Udonis HaslemMIAMI, FLORIDA: Game Five Indiana Pacers - 79 Miami Heat - 90 Q.  Udonis, what did the third quarter kind of seem like when you made all five of your shots, LeBron controlling everything at both ends? Obviously the game was not exactly in your hands to start the quarter. What did those 12 minutes feel like for that team? UDONIS HASLEM: It all started at halftime. I have to give credit to Juwan Howard, he set the tone for the second half in the locker room with the words that he said. And then coming in to start the third quarter, LeBron just echoed it. We just felt like we had 24 minutes to play for our livelihoods. That's how we played in the second half. Q. Udonis, what were those words that he said? UDONIS HASLEM: There's a lot of bleeps and stuff like that. But basically they're not going to give us the game. We have to go out there and take it. We have to be a two‑way team. We have to be aggressive offensively and we have to be aggressive defensively and play Miami Heat basketball. I think in the second half we did that. We swarmed around defensively. We trapped and boxed. We closed out to the shooters and we rebounded. Q. The physical confrontation with David West in the third quarter, after that things seemed to shift. Was that a turning point, did you think, that something needed to happen to ignite the team? UDONIS HASLEM: I was just protecting my point guard. It was kind of a mismatch, Mario against David West. So when I saw the situation, I just tried to step in and protect Mario. Really after that, they gave out the technicals. To me the situation was over. Let's move on to the next play and let's continue to try to win this game. Q. Udonis, two of the last three games you shoot 8‑of‑9 from the field. They didn't think you can do it again; you came out and did it again. What's been the difference with your shot, the lift and the release and the confidence? UDONIS HASLEM: I'm just getting to my spot. For ten years I made my living on the baseline. That's where I'm most comfortable. I'm just back to that spot just because of the way they are guarding us this series and the way Hibbert is playing defense this series, I'm getting back to the spot I made my living at. That's where I've been more comfortable my whole career. Q. In addition to the jumpers, you also had that drive and dunk, which kind of ignited the crowd. You seemed more animated than we usually see you get with the crowd. Can you go through that sequence. UDONIS HASLEM: My emotions got the best of me. I'm usually low key, I'm quiet. I don't show much emotion. I just came out. It was one of those games. We really, really needed it. It kind of just came out of me. Q. Can you talk about what it's like to be on the floor with LeBron James when he takes over a quarter for the entire quarter. UDONIS HASLEM: I mean, he never seems to amaze me. Never seems to amaze me. When you think he can't get any better, when he can't do anything else, he comes back and starts the new season bringing something else to his game. And not only does he do it offensively, he does it defensively. He's a two‑way player. We can depend on him on both ends of the floor. He rebounded well tonight. He made plays, and he obviously made his shots. So we know every night we can depend on him. It's our job to just try to keep up with him. Q. You guys won a close‑out up there last year. You know what you're one win away from now. How important is this to duplicate this effort on Saturday and not come back here for a winner‑take‑all? UDONIS HASLEM: Not only do we have to duplicate it, we have to exceed it. We want to finish the series up there. We're going to treat it like a Game 7. We can't go out like we have the lead in this series. We have to play like we're losing in this series, the next game. Q. Could you take us in the mind of Erik Spoelstra when LeBron is putting up those isolation three‑pointers in a close game like that? Is he happy with that? Is he just hoping it goes in? UDONIS HASLEM: I mean, we stick together. We have confidence in each other. Once the shot goes up or whatever play LeBron decides to make or Dwyane or Chris, whatever play that person decides to make, we live with the consequences and move onto the next play. Every time LeBron let's it fly, I feel like it's going in. Coach feels like it's going in. If it doesn't go in, we get back on defense and go back onto the next. Q. Back to the third quarter again, it looked like the game still could have gone either way. They had the lead there. You guys were rallying a little bit before the flare‑up. Is there something about that moment, did you see anything from LeBron or did he say anything at that time in terms of getting everything back focused again, getting you guys on track those last six, seven minutes of the quarter? UDONIS HASLEM: They're not going to go away. They're a team that never quits. They continue to battle and continue to fight. You have to give them credit. With LeBron it's not what he says all the time, it's just the look he gives. That look I saw tonight is the same look I saw last year in Boston when our backs were against the wall. Once he has that look, like I said, we have to keep up with him. Q. Two things, Udonis: How would you describe that look? I remember the look from Boston. UDONIS HASLEM: It's just a look. It's not an expression, it's not a smile, it's not a frown, it's not a grimace. It's just a look of determination. It's a look that says that, you know, I'm not going to quit. And it's a look that says I'm going to do whatever it takes to put us in a position to win the game. Q. As far as Juwan Howard, there's a lot of guys we think of on your team that might step up and speak in a situation like Game 5 at halftime. He's not really on the short list. UDONIS HASLEM: Oh, man. He's here for a reason. He gives maximum effort every day in practice. And when he has the opportunity to lead verbally, he leads verbally. And he also threw a couple of things around in the locker room, too. I left that out. Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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