A tense, tied NBA Finals moves to Miami for Game 3

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Kevin Durant had the ball in his hands and LeBron James in his face.

With 10 seconds left in Game 2, the NBA Finals were providing all the theater anyone could ask. Two superstars going head-to-head, the Miami Heat trying to hold off another stirring rally by the Oklahoma City Thunder, television ratings reaching levels last seen when Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal played together.

James forced Durant to miss that tying attempt — perhaps getting away with a foul — and the Heat held on for a 100-96 victory on Thursday night that evened the series at one game apiece. And as it shifts to Miami for the next three games, the only thing that seems certain is a tense series that looks to be lengthy.

Game 3 is Sunday night and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra thinks it will look similar to the first two.

"This is going to be probably like this every single game, and that's the beauty of competition at this level, and embracing that competition and seeing what it brings out of you collectively," Spoelstra said.

It's brought out the best of league MVP James and Durant, the NBA scoring champion. The series hype was built around them and they spent the first two games living up to every ounce of it.

James has bounced back from his disappointing 2011 finals by scoring 30 and then 32 points, and even that was only good enough for a split because Durant has been just as good. He followed up his 36-point performance in Game 1 by scoring 32 on Thursday, 16 in the fourth quarter after he scored 17 in the final period of the opener. Yet that was wasted because the Thunder had fallen into a 17-point hole in the first half.

The Thunder also spotted Miami a 13-point lead in the first half of Game 1 and have fallen into double-digit holes in three straight games. Coach Scott Brooks said after Game 2 he wasn't considering a new starting lineup, even though the Thunder have been more effective with a smaller group on the floor.

Instead, he said the only change the Thunder needed was greater intensity from the start.

"We didn't come out with the toughness that we need to come out with. We're an aggressive team, we're a physical team," he said. "Defensive mindset was not where it needs to be, and hopefully we change that going into Game 3."

The slow starts at home could mean trouble for the Thunder in Miami, where they won't have their raucous crowd to help rattle the Heat. But Oklahoma City has been good on the road in the postseason, winning twice in Dallas in the first round, taking a game in Los Angeles in the second round and pulling out a Game 5 victory in San Antonio in the Western Conference finals.

"These are the two best teams. They're confident no matter what building they're in," James said. "We're happy now that it's a 1-1 series and we're going back to Miami and will take control of the home court. It doesn't mean that the series has changed. Both teams can win on each other's floor and both teams are confident."

Ratings through two games are up 11 percent from last year, when it seemed interest in the Heat couldn't get higher, and Thursday drew the highest rating for a Game 2 since 2004, when the Lakers lost to Detroit in their last title run with O'Neal and Bryant.

The latest game provided a look at the best of what both teams have: James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all making big plays in the fourth quarter; Sixth Man of the Year James Harden coming off the Thunder bench to keep them in it while Durant sat with foul trouble; Russell Westbrook turning from sloppy to sensational as the game went along.

So what's next?

"It's a long series. After Game 1 there was the hyperbole of, 'The Heat have no idea what to do with the speed of OKC.' I have no idea what the story lines will be after Game 2," Miami forward Shane Battier said. "We know every game is its own beast. You just have to play disciplined and tough to win a single game in the finals."

Battier has provided surprising offense with 17 points in each game while also taking his turns defending Durant. But it's James who will likely have that role during the important stretches, such as the crucial moment of Game 2.

Durant expects to score no matter who his guarding him. The problem, he said, is the Thunder aren't paying enough attention to the other end of the floor.

"I've got to make shots for my team. But I think on the defensive end, we all have to be better, and we can't really worry about the offensive end," he said. "We missed shots, but we can't let it dictate our defense. But I've got to stay positive, keep working, and we're looking forward to a Game 3."

The Heat's last finals game on their home floor ended with Dallas celebrating a championship after Game 6 last year. They can be the ones partying this time if they take care of all three in Miami.

For now, the Heat are only worried about the first one.

"We've got to figure out a way at home to protect home floor, especially in Game 3, and win it," Wade said. "If you go up there and lose Game 3, you've given them, in a sense, home court right back. We just want to continue to play well at home like we've done all season long."

Why Experience of Tiger Woods Ensures Dominant Round 3

With Tiger Woods tied for the lead following the cut and heading into Round 3 of play, he is the heavy favorite to win the U.S. Open in 2012.

While he shares the lead with David Toms and Jim Furyk, it’s Woods who should come away with his 15th major championship. The fundamental reason is simple: No one else has been in this position as many times as Woods has.

Through the first two rounds, Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and Vijay Singh have been cut, while more experienced names like Phil Mickelson and Angel Cabrera are so far out of contention that they stand little chance in the future.

Moving into Day 3, it has become rather clear that Tiger Woods enters as the odds-on front man. Considering his familiarity with the field and the poise that he offers as someone who has “been there before”, it’s become clear that it will be incredibly difficult for anyone out there to give Woods a sincere run for his money.

Of course, every year there is a surprise and a twist. No one knows what to expect from the Masters and the U.S. Open.

That is, no one knows what to expect from the U.S. Open if they’ve never been there before. At this point in his career, Woods is so far beyond familiar with the pressure of what is at stake that it’s almost unfair. His life experience, both as a golfer and as an individual, is unmatched by any golfer in the tournament, and it isn’t even close. Each time that he steps foot onto the greens, he holds a superiority that others can only dream of obtaining.

Take Beau Hossler, for instance.

Hossler may been a fun story and fans across the country, especially in the region of Southern California, are pulling for his success. But at 17-years old, there’s only so much that you can expect. He is, after all, in high school and had his prom only one month ago.

This is his second appearance in any major tournament. Woods, on the other hand, turned professional in 1996 when he was only 21-years old. He has grown up around the sport and boasts dozens of professional victories.

The experience factor isn’t even close, especially when it comes to understanding the complexities and nuances of the U.S. Open. It’s a tournament that he has won outright four times to date. Remember, we’re talking about an individual who’s used to winning many titles in a year (in six different years, he's won six or more professional tournaments).

If Woods were to falter, I would speculate that it would have happened earlier in the tournament. Perhaps he wasn’t feeling the course, or perhaps he was dealing with physical issues that may have slowed him down. Instead, Woods came away from the first half of the tournament on top.

And for the first time since 1994, the defending Masters champion (Bubba Watson) and the defending U.S. Open champion (Rory McIlroy) both missed the cut. Woods is dealing with very little competition with much experience at all.

Having already shown his resilience after recovering from consecutive bogies, Woods has maintained control of his swing. As we enter Round 3, expect Tiger Woods to maintain that exact same dominance that we have now come to be ever so familiar with when hearing his name in the days of old.

Nik Wallenda Fulfills Lifelong Dream in Niagara Falls High Wire Walk

Daredevil Nik Wallenda became the first person to walk across Niagara Falls on a high wire.

Tens of thousands of people gathered at the falls Friday night and millions more were believed to be watching on television as Wallenda crossed some 200 feet in the air on a two-inch-wide wire strung over the raging waters of Horseshoe Falls, the largest of the three falls that make up Niagara Falls.

Wallenda trotted in his final steps across the wire and stepped into Canada, barely 25 minutes after he started.

PHOTOS: Nik Wallenda Traverses Niagara Falls

After he greeted his wife and family, Wallenda was approached by customs agents, who asked him for his passport, which he presented.

"No, I'm not carrying anything over. I promise," he said.

"What is the purpose of your trip sir?" the agent asked.

"To inspire people around the world," Wallenda said.

Wallenda said the mist and the winds midway across the walk were the biggest challenge.

"It's all about the concentration, the focus, and it all goes back to the training," he said.

"I'm grinning from ear to ear because I can see I'm here. I made it," he added.

Walk Across Niagara: By the Numbers

Others have crossed the Niagara River itself, but never over the falls. Wallenda said that Friday night's feat was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream as well as a chance to honor his great-grandfather, legendary funambilist Karl Wallenda, who died after falling from a tightrope in Puerto Rico in 1978.

Celebrating Father’s Day Without Dad

My Dad was everything a girl could hope for—tall, dark, handsome and crazy about me. And he held the number one attribute on my little kid scorecard: he was a smooth dancer, smiling as my miniature Mary Janes scuffed his wingtips. He was a gentle man and a gentleman, so kind that he’d drop an extra quarter in the toll booth collector basket for the driver in line behind him.

Dad never went to college but I knew he was smart because he never talked to my brother Jack or me in baby talk. “Don’t gesture with your utensils,” he’d say. “Don’t yawn audibly!” Dad even said “shan’t” instead of “shall not.” No other Dad on the block did that.

Though I idolized my Dad, I knew my Mom had first dibs. Dad was so in love with Mom that he used to put rivets in his hat that spelled TGFM, Thank God for Mary. His other acronym, used to defuse any small family scuffle, was “BD. Blame Daddy.” Dad spoiled me for what to expect in a husband. (Thank God I lucked out when I met Joe, though I doubt he’ll be putting TGFML on his baseball caps anytime soon.)

When we were young, our family would escape to a tiny cabin at a South Jersey lake—no hot water or shower, but the fun of our very own outhouse. After dinner, we’d all sit on a beat up red sofa on the screened porch. Dad would put his arms around us and we’d all belt out “You Are My Sunshine” and “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad.” But when Dad launched into “Carolina Moon,” we didn’t know the words so we just let him sing to the night stars in his croon-y Perry Como style. Mom would hold his hand and smile.

Year after year, I watched my Dad love Mom with a passion even as she weakened with a rare blood disease that would finally take her life.

With her gone, I tried to be there for Dad. I’d visit him every month in Florida and I’d sit in Mom’s recliner alongside his and we’d watch his favorite Seinfeld reruns. Dad had suffered two strokes, so he didn’t talk as much but his vocabulary never slacked off. During a speech therapy exercise, I asked him to repeat, “I feel sad” and he slowly formed the words, “I…feel…lu-gu-bri-ouuuusss.”

But an MRI revealed something I couldn’t fix—terminal brain and kidney cancer. I brought Dad back up north so Jack and I could help him feel comfortable. One night, after failing miserably in an attempt to give him morphine, I ran out into the dark, crying, “I’m his daughter, not his doctor.” When I pulled myself together and returned, Dad was resting on a red leather couch set up for his frequent and now, extended naps. Curled on the couch, nearly 92, he looked almost childlike. “Daddy, does this sofa remind you of our cabin at the lake?” He grinned with the memory. I whispered, “Do you remember when we used to sing together?” He looked at me and then slowly my Dad started to sing, so softly that I had to bend close to hear. “Carolina Moon, keep shining, shining on the one who waits for me. Carolina Moon, I’m pining, pining for the place I long to be.”

Dad was missing Mom. Letting him go to her was the hardest thing I have ever done. Today, Father’s Day doesn’t make me sad. It only brings back memories–of starry skies, his strong arms around us, his voice clear and strong in the night. I can hear him still. And I know this for sure. I will always be his girl.