By | Associated Press 
Associated Press/Wilfredo Lee - Miami Heat point guard Mario Chalmers (15) fouls San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the first half of Game 2 of the NBA Finals basketball game, Sunday,
MIAMI (AP) — Mario Chalmers scored 16 points and Chris Bosh had 12 points, nine rebounds and three steals to help the Miami Heat to a 75-65 lead over the San Antonio Spurs after third quarters in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night.
Dwyane Wade added 10 points and six assists for the defending champion Heat, who trail the best-of-seven series 1-0. LeBron James had just eight points on 3-for-13 shooting, but chipped in five rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Danny Green had 17 points on 6-for-6 shooting and Tony Parkerhad 13 points and five assists for the Spurs, who turned the ball over 13 times in the first half after tying a finals record with only four in Game 1.
Game 3 is Tuesday night in San Antonio.
Tim Duncan and nine points and 11 rebounds and Kawhi Leonardhad 14 rebounds, including eight on offense, for the Spurs, who shot just 40.7 percent.
After playing an air-tight Game 1, these two evenly matched teams didn't give each other much room to breathe in the first three quarters of Game 2.
Green hit his first three shots of the night, all from deep, and Duncan's 17-foot jumper gave the Spurs an 11-6 lead. But the Heat jumped back into it with some stellar halfcourt defense and Bosh's putback of a miss by James gave the Heat an 18-15 lead with 2 minutes to play in the first period.
James had a triple-double in Game 1 with 18 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists. But his scoring total was the lowest in these playoffs, and again there was chatter that the four-time MVP somehow needed to do more. James brushed those suggestions off, saying it was important to get guys like Bosh and Wade going early to get them into the game.
James didn't get on the board until a baseline jumper with 14.5 seconds to go in the first quarter, and Leonard and Green made him work for everything for a second game in a row. He missed eight of his first 10 shots, including a layup in transition that was challenged by Green early in the third quarter.
Back and forth they went, with Miami surging to an eight-point lead early in the third quarter before Green hit his fifth 3 of the night and Leonard added another from deep to push the Spurs right back into it.
Green, who was cut twice by the Spurs and once by the Cavaliers during an early portion of his career that took him to Slovenia and Reno in the NBA's developmental league, was flawless in the first three quarters after playing a big role in the Game 1 victory. His layup gave San Antonio a 62-61 lead with under four minutes to play in the third quarter.
But Chalmers seemed to have an answer every time. Often the brunt of harsh prodding from James and Wade on the court, the former Final Four hero from Kansas kept the Heat going in this one. His three-point play gave Miami a 64-62 lead in response to Green's layup, Ray Allen hit a 3 and James finally converted on a tough drive to the rim for a 69-62 lead, eliciting a roar from the white-clad crowd.
Even though it's only Game 2, there was so much on the line for the star-studded Heat. An incredible 27-game winning streak fueled a 66-win season, with many handing James and Co. their second straight title before the playoffs even started.
Then the Indiana Pacers took them to seven games in a rugged Eastern Conference finals series, and a seemingly invincible team suddenly looked beatable.
After leading for most of Game 1 behind 17 points from Wade in the first three quarters, the Heat appeared to run out of gas in the fourth. Wade was held scoreless in the final period and the well-rested Spurs got a miraculous shot from Parker with 5.2 seconds in a 92-88 victory.
In the history of the NBA Finals, only three of 31 teams had come back to win the championship after falling behind 0-2. None of those teams did it after losing the first two games at home, and the series is headed back to the River Walk for three straight games this week.
Leading up to the game, the Heat remained confident in the fact that they have come back from a 1-0 deficit so many times before. They trailed Chicago in last year's playoffs, but rebounded to win 4-1. They did the same to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the finals and again to the Bulls in this year's Eastern Conference semifinals. But there was a big difference in all three of those series.
"We didn't lose any games at home," Bosh said. "Dropping one on your home floor in the opening is a tough pill to swallow, but it's our reality."
They walked into an arena on Sunday night with white t-shirts draped over every seat that read "Larry loves Miami," a reference to the Lawrence O'Brien championship trophy. But there was no question that this 1-0 hole may have been their biggest yet since James arrived on South Beach three years ago. Wade called it a must-win game.
Duncan and Gregg Popovich, one of the most respected coaches in the NBA, have won four championships together. But the core that also includes Parker and Manu Ginobili hasn't hoisted the trophy since 2007, when the Spurs beat James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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