Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers: Again the Sixers Have No Answer to the King

For three quarters tonight there was a playoff atmosphere in the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat. But in the end, the young Sixers were no match for the Heat's superior talent.

If you want to sum up the game in one stat, the Heat's three starters in the front court scored 33 points while the Sixers' scored just 10. Both Elton Brand and Tony Battie went scoreless and were clearly over-matched on both ends of the court.

"The Night Shift" managed to keep the game close. Lavoy Allen hit a jumper to tie the game at 61 with about two-and-a-half minutes left in the third quarter. But then "King" LeBron James took over the game. He gave the Heat the lead with a jumper from the corner and then snagged consecutive rebounds, one from each end of the court.

James scored the last eight points of the quarter for the Heat, and that pretty much decided the game at that point.

A layup by Jrue Holiday put the score at 79-71 with just over eight minutes left in the game.  The Sixers then went into an offensive funk and missed eight consecutive long two-point shots. The score went to 94-71 and the coaches emptied the benches.

So while the Sixers knocked off both the Orlando Magic and the Chicago Bulls during this home stand, beating the Heat is another story. The Heat have now won 13 of the last 14 games against the Sixers.  Without some help for the Sixers in the front court, it doesn't look this trend will end anytime soon.