Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma Thunder: The teleserye

Watching Game 4 of this year's NBA Finals with the Heat up front 2-1 against the Thunder is like watching a teleserye.

Last year, with the Heat also ahead of the Mavericks 2-1, they were leading by 9 points with 10 minutes left in the game. It looked like Game 4 was in the bag and they only had to win Game 5 to clinch the championship. It was not to be. The Mavericks caught up with the Heat and won the next two games to become the 2011 NBA champion.

Will history repeat itself?

First, there is confrontation between the Heat's Big Three—Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh—and Thunder's Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

Then, there's action on the hard court similar to the fight sequences in a teleserye.

The nail-biting suspense comes as James is hurt and must leave the game in the closing minutes.

And just like any soap, squabbles erupt in sub-plots. Recent online reports say the Heat's Wade has asked the court to suspend the visiting privileges of his ex-wife, Siohvaughn Funches-Wade, who allegedly tried to abduct their two kids. The two were divorced in 2010.

I cheer for the Miami Heat simply because the coach, Erik Spoelstra, is Fil-American. His mom is from San Pablo, Laguna.

In the first quarter, Oklahoma (OKC) outpaces Miami and leads by as much as 17 points, due mainly to the flawless performance of Westbrook.

Play by play

I am downhearted. Is history really going to repeat itself? The quarter ends with the Thunder ahead 33-19.

Much like a teleserye where the hero manages to recover from a setback, the Heat rally in the second quarter. James and Wade are finally knocking down their shots with much needed help from Norris Cole.

The first half ends with OKC ahead by only three points, 49-46. Westbrook continues to crack the Heat's defense and makes 18 points after two quarters...

In the third period, James and Wade continue their excellent plays. This time, they get much needed support from Mario Chalmers. Westbrook is still unstoppable. It is a see-saw battle that ends with the Heat ahead, 79-75.

In the fourth quarter, the Heat manage to erect a seven point advantage with 7½ minutes to go on the heroic efforts of Chalmers but Westbrook won't let the Heat get away with it and scores seven successive points (two field goals and three foul shots) to tie the game at 90.

No cliffhangers here

Then with 5:15 to go and Miami leading by only two points, James is hurt and must leave the game. Oh no! I start thinking of the worst scenario. It's going to be a disaster if he cannot continue to play. What if the injury is serious and he can't play in the next games? Miami will have a difficult time against OKC.

In a teleserye, the action will stop and viewers will have no choice but to tune in next time for the resolution of the cliffhanger. Fortunately, this is a basketball game and the coverage continues.

We are informed that James is suffering from leg cramps and the trainers are working on him. So it is nothing serious. What a relief! But can he go back to the game? With four minutes left in the game, James returns to the hard court as the Miami crowd.

With a 3-1 win, will the Heat bag the championship?

The fans get even more hysterical as James sinks a three-pointer after the game is tied. The Heat now leads 97-94. James cannot continue and must return to the bench with 55 seconds to go and the Heat ahead by five. In basketball, 55 seconds is an eternity and anything can still happen.

With 17 seconds left, the Heat ahead by three and only five seconds left on the shot clock, Westbrook, who has already scored 43 points, makes a serious error by fouling Chalmers. He should have let the shot clock run so that the Thunder can have possession of the ball for a last chance to tie the game. Chalmers makes both foul shots. The game ends with the Heat winning, 104-98.

So the Heat is now ahead 3-1. No team who has recorded a 3-1 lead has ever lost the NBA championship. Chances are the Heat will be this year's champion.

In a teleserye, the hero and heroine live happily every after. Will the Heat's quest have a happy ending too? Abangan and susunod na kabanata on Friday at 9 a.m. (local time) on ABS-CBN (Channel 8) and BTV (Channel 33).on Sky Cable. ABS-CBN is also seen on Channel 2 on terrestrial TV.

Editor's note: The blogger's views do not represent Yahoo! Southeast Asia's position on the topic or issue being discussed in this post.