Dein erstes Forum » goes well with that (on Tuesday), then we ant

MIAMI -- By now, Lance Stephensons list of egregious acts from Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals are well-known: He blew air into LeBron James ear, interrupted a Miami Heat huddle and got caught flopping for the second time. And on Thursday, the Heat tried to get their focus back on themselves. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra almost never holds a practice the day after a road game, especially when the team plane lands around 3:30 a.m. as was the case in the wee hours of Thursday. But Spoelstra deviated from the norm on the day before Game 6 of this East title series, not for any one on-court issue but rather so the two-time defending NBA champions could relieve some frustration. "Clear heads ... and to connect," Spoelstra said. "We didnt want to leave it all to tomorrow. There were some things we wanted to go over, and for times sake, splitting it up was a little bit more efficient." The Heat still lead the series 3-2, and get the chance to close the Pacers out for the third straight year on Friday night. The game is in Miami, where the Heat have won their last 10 playoff contests. Predictably, the talk on the off day wasnt so much about Paul George scoring 37 points to lead his team to a season-saving win, or even how James was held to seven points on a night that he was rendered silent for long stretches because of foul trouble. Instead, the buzz was almost entirely about Stephenson, who has simultaneously become a Heat frustration and Internet sensation. Images of his already-infamous ear-blowing stunt were widely distributed on social media moments after it occurred in Game 5, and he didnt back down Thursday when asked about his desire to pester the Heat. "Just playing ball, man, having fun and enjoying the moment," Stephenson said. Spoelstra didnt react when Stephenson -- who said James was showing signs of "weakness" earlier in the series -- crashed the Heat huddle. Much like his players, Spoelstra didnt bite when asked about the excitable Pacer guards attempts to throw Miami off its game. "Very bizarre game," Heat guard Dwyane Wade said. "Weird game. But its over." Indiana coach Frank Vogel didnt seem to mind the huddle move, though suggested the ear-blowing decision was a bit much. "People are in my huddle all the time. Every player in the NBA does that. Thats nothing," Vogel said. "Blowing in his face probably crosses the line. Thats not really who we are. We want to be a competitive team, but we dont want to cross the line." Stephenson and Pacers centre Roy Hibbert flew to Miami with slightly lighter wallets; Stephenson was fined $10,000 by the NBA on Thursday for his second flop of the series, Hibbert $5,000 for another flopping violation. It marked the second time in as many games that a Pacer has drawn a fine, with George having gotten dinged for $25,000 after blasting the officiating following Indianas loss in Game 4. In Georges case, the money might have seemed well-spent. Indiana took 22 free throws in Game 5 to Miamis eight, a total that matched the fewest any team has shot in a playoff game since 2006. "We just didnt get to the free-throw line," James said. "We were aggressive ... we shot the ball extremely well. We just didnt get to the line." Almost everything went wrong for Miami in Game 5, and the Heat still nearly won. James shot just 2 for 10 in 24 minutes, and got his fifth foul with 8 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter, with the Heat leading by eight. Miami went scoreless on nine of its first 12 possessions after James checked out and the Pacers used that stretch to build a five-point lead, the margin eventually reaching seven when George connected on a 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer. Down by as many as 11 in the fourth, Miami had a chance to take the lead in the final seconds, but Chris Boshs 3-pointer bounced away. And with that, the Heat started the process of turning the page to Friday night, when they could punch their fourth straight ticket to the NBA Finals. "Its Game 6," Bosh said. "Its our Game 7." CINCINNATI, Ohio -- The Reds lost a game to the weather -- a recurring problem this season -- and took a couple more steps toward getting some injured players back on the roster. The opening game of a series with the Chicago Cubs was postponed on Monday following a 57-minute delay to the first pitch. It was the eighth postponement in 12 years at Great American Ball Park. The game wasnt immediately rescheduled. Manager Bryan Price said the game wont be made up during this series. The Cubs visit for a four-game series from July 7-10. "Theres no way well make it up in this series," Price said. "The way it works out, well probably be able to make it up during that series in July before the All-Star break." Rain has been a problem in Cincinnati this season. The Reds have had one game postponed and another suspended overnight because of rain. Theyve had rain delays for four of the 10 games totalling 8 hours, 57 minutes. The teams will stay on schedule with their starters. Chicagos Jeff Samardzija will face the Reds Alfredo Simon on Tuesday night. It will be Simons first scheduled start since an unidentified woman filed a civil lawsuit against him in a Washington, D.C. court last Thursday, claiming he sexually assaulted her in a hotel one year ago. "I take him at his word that nothing happened and hes assured me that hes ready to pitch and his focus is on pitching," Price said. Simon has been one of Cincinnatis best starters while filling in for the injured Mat Latos, who had surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right knee on Feb. 14. Simon is 3-1 with a 1.30 earned run average in four starts. Latos had a setback in his recovery from the knee problem when he developed soreness in his pitching forearm near the elbow. He has resumed playing catch and could get back to throwing off the bullpen mound later this week. "Once we get him on the mound a couple of times, then we go out there and do a simulated game and then get him into rehab games," Price said.dddddddddddd "Hes not like starting from square one, even though hes just playing catch now. "If we dont have any setbacks, we should be able to progress pretty quickly through this rehab." Closer Aroldis Chapman is scheduled to throw to Reds batters again on Tuesday before the game. If that goes well, he could start a rehab stint in the minors. Chapman was hit on the forehead by a line drive on March 19 and had a metal plate inserted in his forehead to help fractures heal. "If everything goes well with that (on Tuesday), then we anticipate getting him out on a short rehab and then having him back with us pretty quickly," Price said. Samardzija is trying to break a streak of 11 straight starts without a win since last Aug. 30. Samardzija has pitched well -- quality starts his last eight games -- but the Cubs have scored only 21 runs while he was on the mound in the last 10 games. Last Wednesday, Samardzija left with a 5-2 lead before Arizona rallied for a 7-5 win. The Cubs havent fared well against the Reds overall. They dropped two of three at Wrigley Field this month and havent won the season series against Cincinnati since 2009. Theyre 6-16 against Cincinnati over the last two seasons and 10-28 over the last three. NOTES: Cubs RH Jake Arrieta will be activated off the DL and could start later this week. Hes been sidelined since March 21 with tightness in his pitching shoulder. RH Carlos Villanueva will move into the bullpen. ... RF Nate Schierholtz was going to get a day off. ... The Reds Skip Schumaker started a rehab assignment at Triple-A Louisville on Monday. Hes recovering from a separated left shoulder sustained during spring training. ' ' '