Miami Heat Had No Answers for Roy Hibbert

Roy Hibbert feasted on the Miami Heat’s short-handed frontline last night, helping to lead the Indiana Pacers to a surprising 2-1 lead, and placing enormous pressure on LeBron and company. From the Palm Beach Post: “Roy Hibbert spent some of his off-season with Tim Duncan, learning not just how to play the game, but how to handle his business and personal affairs. The Spurs’ backbone texts the Pacers’ center after every contest with additional advice. After Thursday’s performance, he couldn’t have offered much more than congratulations. Hibbert, while an All-Star this season, isn’t always assertive. Thursday, matched up with surprise starter Dexter Pittman, Hibbert was a force from the start. He finished with 19 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks in 33 minutes. It’s apparent that the Heat has no answers for him, especially in the absence of the injured Chris Bosh, who did not travel to Indiana. ‘I go into every game thinking to clog up the lane and alter shots,’ Hibbert said. ‘But, without him in the game, I can wander a little more, clog up things a little more and block shots.’ That’s the case even though the Heat did get 15 combined points from Ronny Turiaf and Joel Anthony, who took over for Pittman, with Turiaf starting the second half. Udonis Haslem played seven minutes for Miami in the first half, none in the second.”