Pyscho T and Friends Open Tech Floodgates in Confrontations with LeBron, Wade

Physical play has marked virtually every recent meeting between the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers, and Game 2 was no different. Tyler Hansbrough and his teammates got into it with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade early and often as the Pacers pulled out a 97-93 win in Miami.  

Sam Young actually started things off by taking a swipe at the ball James was cradling after the whistle. It was a relatively benign play, but James took exception, probably because he knew the officials would be quick to quell any issues with a technical foul.

It also didn't hurt that James was pretty sure he'd avoid a tech himself.

Young earned the violation in the opening minutes of the second quarter, but his technical wasn't the last. Moments later, Pacers assistant Brian Shaw got his very own technical foul for getting into it with referee Bill Kennedy.

Apparently, Kennedy thought one good tech deserved another.

Best of all, Shaw screamed "Ball don't lie!" after Ray Allen missed the second technical free throw. It appears Rasheed Wallace's absence from these playoffs won't keep us from enjoying his signature howl.

Just a couple of minutes later, we had another incident.

The Heat had been having remarkable success with their pump fakes all game long, as the Pacers defenders seemed particularly intent on preventing open jumpers. Either that, or they were a little wound up for a game they really needed to win to avoid a 0-2 hole.

At any rate, Indiana players were jumping out of their shoes at the slightest eyebrow raise from the Heat's cadre of scorers. Naturally, the insanely aggressive, bug-eyed lunatic known as "Psycho T" was chief among the leapers.

Shortly after the Young and Shaw technicals, Wade got Hansbrough airborne with a solid fake from the left wing. As the Pacers forward came down, Wade leaned in, easily drawing enough contact to earn a whistle.

But then Hansbrough, who ended up behind Wade, actually reached up and gave the Heat guard a little shove on his right shoulder. Wade, never afraid to hit the deck with slight contact, went down. Probably seeking to aggravate the situation, Wade hopped up and stared Hansbrough down.

In the midst of all that, the officials administered a technical foul to Psycho T, which was understandable. I mean, considering the guy's nickname (and incomprehensibly annoying habit of hacking everything in sight), it's hard to understand how he ever avoids techs.

The action continued after halftime, as David West took a shot at Mario Chalmers' sore shoulder. Thanks to some hard contact by West on a screen, Chalmers' shoulder is going to be hurting for a while longer.

It's hard to be sure what West's intentions were. Just kidding! He was definitely gunning for Chalmers' sore spot.

The Pacers are continuing to play well despite the few instances in which they've lost their cool, so it appears as though the Heat are in for a fight in more ways than one.