Basketball On The Internet.

IT may only have been Game 6 but it may well be remembered as the night Ray Allen saved the Heat and put the pieces in place for back-to-back NBA Championships.

Allen assuredly saved the legacies of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade after Tim Duncan had been an absolute monster for San Antonio with a 25-point first half of total mastery.

But in the end, it was Allen who stepped back (travelled?) to make an amazing triple from the corner to force an overtime Miami had no reason to expect was even possible.

And then it was Allen - stolen away from Boston Celtics in the off-season to provide exactly what he did in Game 6 - who made the cluitch free throws that guaranted a deciding Game 7 on Friday.

When Chris Bosh blocked (fouled?) Danny Green on a desperation three from the corner, Miami had prevailed 103-100 in one of the best games of basketball you could ever hope to see.

Duncan came up empty in the fourth quarter and overtime, ending a huge night with a heavy thud while still compiling 30 points on 13-of-21 shooting and 17 boards.

"It's disappointing. I had some opportunities. We put ourselves in position to win the game. They made plays to take it from us," Duncan said.

Manu Ginobili, a turnover machine, had an absolute stinker, though he was clearly fouled going to the hoop with heartbeats left in overtime and San Antonio trailing 100-101.

He makes the free throws and we might have a different final few seconds.

But then, he may not have made the free throws, having missed a big one earlier when the Spurs needed a pair from the veteran to ice the game and the championship.

Bosh, who was abused by Duncan, blocked Tony Parker's game-winning attempt in the final minute and his "block" of Green also was huge.

"For 46 minutes, that would be a foul," ESPN caller Jeff van Gundy pontificated.

It was lucky for Miami that Allen was calm in the maelstrom because James certainly was not.

It was as if he didn't know what to do with the ball on his final two possessions of the fourth quarter, turning it over twice.

But while he struggled late, James all but carried the Heat to the finish line, scoring 21 points in the second half and finishing with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.

Mario Chalmers had 20 points on 7-of-11, including 4-of-5 from outside the arc.

The Spurs outscored Miami 60-36 in the paint but when Mike Miller is hitting a triple without a shoe, the Basketball Gods might be shaking their finger.

Duncan led the Spurs to the verge of another championship at the age of 37 but Gregg Popovich's entire team ran out of gas down the stretch.

Bouncing back inside 48 hours looks a very big ask.