Miami beats Dallas 98-96 in third game of the NBA Finals

June 14, 2006

The Miami Heat beat the Dallas Mavericks by a score of 98-96 in the third game of the NBA Finals. Dallas leads the series 2-1.

Miami led at half-time by nine points, but Dallas outscored them in the third quarter 34-16.

Dallas held a 89-76 led with 6:30 left in the fourth quarter. A late 17-5 run led by Dwyane Wade put Miami back into the game. With 9.3 seconds left, Miami's Gary Payton hit the game winning shot. Dirk Nowitzki had a chance to tie the game for Dallas, but failed to hit his freethrow.

Miami head coach, Pat Riley, said "The basketball gods were good to us tonight, that's all you can say."

The next game will be June 15, 2006 in Miami. Dallas needs to win two more games and Miami needs to win three more games to become the 2006 NBA champions.