Wade Recovers, Saves Heat

With his hip smarting and bruised from a frightening first-half tumble, and his team trailing by five in the season’s biggest game, Dwyane Wade returned to save the Miami Heat’s day -- and perhaps its season -- in a 92-78 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night.

“I sent word to the locker room,” Shaquille O’Neal said, “that we needed him.”

Wade scored 28 points, 15 of them coming after he bruised his right hip while trying to score over Michael Sweetney with 2:45 left in the half, and the Heat took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.

“A little shot in the butt,” Wade said, describing the painkiller he took. “It started kicking in after a couple minutes out there and I felt good after that.”

Wade’s return 6:10 into the third quarter coincided with the start of a 21-6 Miami run, which gave the Heat a 71-61 lead with 8:12 left. Sweetney made a pair of free throws with 4:47 left to get Chicago within 77-73 -- but Miami sealed it with a 15-0 run over the next four minutes.

Andres Nocioni had 23 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulls, who shot only 35%. Ben Gordon added 10 points but made only three of 16 shots.

Chicago guard Kirk Hinrich missed 10 of 13 shots.

San Antonio 109, Sacramento 98 -- Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker helped the Spurs overcome a combined 62 points from Bonzi Wells and Ron Artest at San Antonio, going into the lane for five straight baskets down the stretch to lead the Spurs to a 3-2 series lead.

Wells tied it at 91-91 on a three-point basket before the Spurs took the lead for good on their drives down the lane.

Ginobili led the Spurs with 27 points and nine rebounds. Duncan had 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Parker scored 21.

Wells scored 38 and Artest had 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter.

New Jersey 92, Indiana 86 -- Vince Carter had 34 points, 15 rebounds and a game-clinching dunk with 28 seconds left at East Rutherford, N.J., to help the Nets take a 3-2 lead in the series.

Jermaine O’Neal had 19 points for Indiana, which played without Jeff Foster (back) and was missing Peja Stojakovic (knee) for the third time in the series.