Ray Allen barrage of three pointers and ..."/> Ray Allen barrage of three pointers and ..."/>

LeBron James throws down the breakaway dunk (GIF)

Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Before there was that Ray Allen barrage of three pointers and before LeBron James had the chance to celebrate like a mad man, the Miami Heat had to tend to the business of taking their first lead of the game against the Indiana Pacers.

That moment did not come until the third quarter. James got loose and Dwyane Wade found him for the easy breakaway dunk. If you are a believer that not all baskets are created equal in terms of their significance, symbolic or otherwise, over the course of a game, then you might have flagged this one as a key moment in the game.

lebron-james-breakaway-dunk-GIF
lebron-james-breakaway-dunk-GIF /

You wouldn’t know it from the final score and the way this game got away from the Pacers, but for most of the first half it looked like the road team was going to have the goods to pull off the upset.

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That’s not how things worked out as the Heat outscored the visitors by 16 points in the second half. Now the impossible-to-predict Pacers have their work cut out for them if they want to complete their unlikely run to an Eastern Conference title. The series will resume Monday night in Miami for game four.