Carter's late FTs lift Nets to win over Heat in London

Associated Press
Published: Monday, Oct. 13, 2008 12:42 a.m. MDT
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LONDON — Vince Carter headed out of Europe with two wins and a few new jokes in his repertoire.

Carter made three free throws in the final 10 seconds to help the New Jersey Nets hold on for a 94-92 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday in a preseason game played in front of a boisterous London crowd.

It was the Nets' second win over the Heat in four days, after a 100-98 in overtime victory in Paris on Thursday as part of the NBA's European preseason tour. But for New Jersey's new-look squad, the weeklong chance to get to know each other could prove to be even more important than the two close wins.

"With a new team like this, these are the situations you need," Carter said. "We have a good time on the bus going wherever we go. We have a bunch of comedians on the team, so we have a good time laughing and joking. That's probably the highlight of the trip because everywhere we go, something funny is going to happen. Especially from our rookies."

Carter finished with 19 points and Yi Jianlian added another 17 in his debut for the Nets (2-0) in a game that treated the British fans to a number of high-flying dunks but even more sloppy turnovers.

Marcus Banks had 19 points, and Dwyane Wade added 18 for the Heat (0-3), who fought back from a 19-point first-quarter deficit to push the game to the final seconds. Miami has not won a preseason game since 2006, after going 0-7 in exhibition contests last year before posting the league's worst record (15-67).

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"These two close-game situations are invaluable for the younger players, and also the veteran guys," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "But now as we move forward and we get back to Miami we really have to have a productive week."

Whether it was fatigue or the fact that the teams are still learning to play together, both sides struggled to keep possession of the ball and combined for 47 turnovers.

There were some highlights for the sold-out crowd at the O2 Arena, with Wade and rookie forward Michael Beasley providing the most memorable play midway through the fourth quarter.

After Banks made an emphatic block on Devin Harris, Wade led a fastbreak and sent a high pass to a soaring Beasley, who finished with one-handed alley-oop dunk that drew the loudest cheers of the night.

"I threw it high on purpose," Wade said. "I wanted to see how high he can jump, and he showed me. It was a very athletic play."

That dunk gave Miami a 76-73 lead, but it wasn't enough to overcome its dismal first quarter, which included 11 turnovers.

"It took the air out of our sails at the beginning," Spoelstra said. "We couldn't get anything going."

LAKERS 94, KINGS 89: At Las Vegas, Pau Gasol had 12 points and six rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings. Kobe Bryant scored nine points in 25 minutes on 4-of-12 shooting for the Lakers (1-2), Andrew Bynum had nine points, five rebounds and three blocks, and Vladimir Radmanovic also finished with nine points and had seven rebounds. Jason Thompson led the Kings (1-2) with 15 points and also had eight rebounds. John Salmons added 11 points, and Brad Miller had 10.

76ERS 85, RAPTORS 79: At Toronto, Thaddeus Young scored 17 points, Andre Igoudala added 13, and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Toronto Raptors. Philadelphia rookie Marreese Speights scored 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter, and Louis Williams chipped in 10 points for the 76ers (2-1). Jason Kapono led Toronto with 14 and Will Solomon had 12. Andrea Bargnani and Anthony Parker also scored in double figures. Nets 100

Heat 98

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