NBA: Fourth-quarter flurry lifts Heat to win over the Bucks

For three quarters, the Milwaukee Bucks went toe-to-toe against the Miami Heat. The fourth period was a completely different story.

The defending NBA champions doubled up on their foes, 28-14 at the start of the final quarter, burying the Bucks late, en route to a 98-86 win and a 2-0 Eastern Conference quarterfinals series lead, Tuesday (Wednesday, PHL time) at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida.

[Related: Heat burn Bucks in second half]

Last Sunday (Monday, PHL time), the Heat turned it up in the second half to notch a 110-87 win in the first match of their best-of-seven series.

This time though, things were tight entering the fourth period. The Heat had just a 68-65 lead and never led by more than eight, surviving two third-quarter deadlocks by their foes.

Miami's reserves however made the difference at the start of the final canto, as Chris Andersen and Norris Cole scored 10 of a 12-0 run to go up 80-65, two and a half minutes in.

Milwaukee finally got on board via four from Monta Ellis, making it 80-69, but Andersen continued to score, and was joined by Shane Battier and Ray Allen, for an 88-71 tally.

Ersan Ilyasova and Mike Dunleavy Jr. countered with triples, making it 94-79, 3:04 remaining, but after Norris Cole hit a pull-up jumper, the Bucks waved the white flag, and both teams sent in their bench players to play out the game's final moments.

Dwyane Wade led the Heat in scoring, finishing with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while also adding seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. LeBron James had a subdued game by his standards, with "just" 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists, plus four turnovers, while Chris Bosh, Shane Battier and Chris Andersen chimed in with 10 apiece.

Ersan Ilyasova equaled Wade's production with 21 points. Mike Dunleavy came off the bench with 16 markers, six boards, five dimes and two swipes, while center Larry Sanders managed 14 points, six rebounds and a block.

The Bucks' starting backcourt of a Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis were way off their mark, combining for 15 points on 5-of-22 shooting. They also had six of their side's 16 turnovers, though they did dish out 10 assists total.

Milwaukee lost despite shooting 50 percent from the field, compared to the Heat's 44.9 percent clip. The Bucks also had a 23-17 edge in assists.

The Heat in contrast got 26 free throw attempts, making 22. The Bucks were only 10-of-17 from the stripe. - AMD, GMA News