• It's no surprise that the Mavs have scored more points from the free-throw line than the Heat (103-102) despite attempting 38 less.  Miami is shooting just 59 percent from the charity stripe during this series compared to 78 percent for Dallas.  What is surprising is that the Heat have been able to win Games 3 and 5 despite their poor shooting.  Miami star guard Dwyane Wade set an NBA Finals record by making 21 free throws in Game 5, the same amount the entire Mavs team made.  Meanwhile, Heat center Shaquille O'Neal reverted back to his old form, making only 2-of-12 in Game 5 to fall to just under 30 percent for the series.  Dallas made 18-of-19 in regulation but missed 3-of-6 in overtime, proving how important timing is.  "Obviously, they are free and, you know, we normally make them," Mavs head coach Avery Johnson said. "So we had two or three that didn't go in for us. It's kind of disappointing. But I don't know if that's why we lost the game."
• Wade may have carried his team at home, but insiders believe he will not get nearly the same amount of calls on the road.  He averaged five more free-throw attempts and 15 points more in Miami than in Games 1 and 2 at Dallas, although his confidence is at an all-time high with the Heat one victory away from their first NBA title.  "We can smell it," Wade said. "Dallas plays well at home but we are a confident bunch so we'll see what happens."  "He's the best right now, that's all you can say," O'Neal said of his teammate. "He's the best."
• Of the 24 times an NBA Finals series has been tied 2-2, the Game 5 winner has gone on to win the title 18 times.  However, despite being down 3-2 in this series, the Mavs are 9-1 ATS in the last 10 meetings with Miami. The Heat will also be looking to snap a six-game losing streak at Dallas dating back to March 2nd, 2002, including a 112-76 defeat back on February 9th, their worst loss of the year.
• Johnson will get an excellent opportunity to back up his NBA Coach of the Year award yet again in Game 6, something he is looking forward to almost as much as escaping Miami.  "There's no tomorrow, and I like that 'no tomorrow' feeling for our team," Johnson said. "Hopefully we can put together more of a complete game than what we've done here in Miami."  He did a great job preparing the Mavs following the Heat's blowout victory in Game 4 and faces a bigger challenge now in the aftermath of Game 5, which ended with the controversial time-out call by Josh Howard that saw players and owner Mark Cuban getting enraged before storming off the court. 
• Miami's bench outscored Dallas for the second straight game, but the return of suspended swingman Jerry Stackhouse should give the Mavs a big boost in Game 6.  Stackhouse is averaging 13 points per game in the NBA Finals and his presence will give Dallas fans just one more thing to cheer about in trying to force Game 7.  See Big Game Preview

Conference Finals Results: Miami | Dallas
Second-round Results: Miami | Dallas
First-round Results: Miami | Dallas

NBA FINALS RECAPS (HOME team in CAPS)

Miami wins 4-2 SU (Dallas 4-2 ATS)
UNDER 4-2

6/20/06 - Game 6: Miami 95, DALLAS 92 (ATS winner: Miami +6 | UNDER 188)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: The Heat won their first NBA title thanks to 11 straight misses at the end of the game by the Mavs, who bolted out to an early 30-23 lead after the first quarter but trailed 49-48 at halftime.  Dallas simply couldn't get the job done - becoming the first team to blow a 2-0 series lead since the format was changed to 2-3-2 in 1985 - and helped push the total UNDER for the fourth time in six games by failing to score more than 100 points yet again. 

6/18/06 - Game 5: MIAMI 101, Dallas 100 OT (ATS winner: Dallas +2.5 | OVER 187)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: Dwyane Wade's two free throws with 1.9 seconds left in overtime gave Miami the win and 3-2 series lead, but they weren't enough to cover the spread. The Heat cut a 51-43 halftime deficit to just one point entering the fourth quarter, which is when Wade took over with 17 of his game-high 43 points. The extra session allowed the total to go OVER after the teams were tied 93-93 at the end of regulation.

6/15/06 - Game 4: MIAMI 98, Dallas 74 (ATS winner: Miami -1 | UNDER 190)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: Miami took control early and finished strong, outscoring Dallas 20-7 in the fourth quarter. That was the fewest amount of points scored in a quarter by any team in NBA Finals history, helping the total sail UNDER. The Mavs had gone on an 8-0 run to close out the third quarter but still couldn't cut their halftime deficit going into the fourth, when they completely unraveled.

6/13/06 - Game 3: MIAMI 98, Dallas 96 (ATS winner: Dallas +5 | OVER 189)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: The Heat closed the game on a furious 22-7 run, led by 15 fourth-quarter points from Dwyane Wade, who also opened the game by scoring 13 in the first. Miami took a 52-43 lead into halftime but saw that disappear in the third quarter, when the Mavs held a 34-16 advantage to head into the fourth up nine. The game seemed to be wrapped up by Dallas before the Heat caught fire, helping the total go OVER for the first time in the series. However, Miami made just 20-of-34 free throws, preventing the team from covering the spread.

6/11/06 - Game 2: DALLAS 99, Miami 85 (ATS winner: Dallas -4.5 | UNDER 188.5)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: The teams combined for just 35 points in the first quarter, setting the pace for an UNDER. From there, Dallas took control, totaling 32 points in the second quarter en route to a commanding 50-34 halftime lead. The Heat outscored the Mavs 51-49 in the second half, but it wasn't nearly enough. Miami again struggled from the free-throw line, making 20-of-32, including 1-of-7 from Shaquille O'Neal.

6/8/06 - Game 1: DALLAS 90, Miami 80 (ATS winner: Dallas -5 | UNDER 192.5)
Recap | Boxscore
SUMMARY: The Mavs ultimately won Game 1 in the fourth quarter, but they also played stellar defense in the second in coming back from an 8-point deficit to take a 46-44 lead at halftime. Miami scored just 13 points in the second and 12 in the fourth after scoring 31 in the first. Poor free-throw shooting doomed the Heat, who hit only 7-of-19 attempts, the worst performance in NBA Finals history.

REGULAR-SEASON RESULTS

Dallas wins 2-0 SU & ATS
OVER/UNDER 1-1

2/9/06 - DALLAS 112, Miami 76 (ATS winner: Dallas -4.5 | UNDER 199)
11/25/06 - Dallas 103, MIAMI 90 (ATS winner: Dallas -1 | OVER 192.5)

REGULAR-SEASON SERIES RECAP: The Mavs swept the regular-season series and have won 10 of the last 12 meetings between the teams. However, Miami center Shaquille O'Neal did not play in the first meeting this season back in November and Pat Riley was not yet the head coach. Dallas star Dirk Nowitzki averaged 25 points in his team's two wins while Heat guard Dwyane Wade didn't have nearly the same impact, totaling 39 combined in his team's two losses. Miami is a much different team now compared to the regular season, but the Mavs have the depth to match up with the Heat at almost every position except center. Depending on who plays better, either Shaq or Dirk will be the difference for their respective teams in the NBA Finals since the opposition really has no way to defend them.