Plauderecke » a team like Virginia when theyre comin

MIAMI - Dwyane Wade still gets angry. Just not as often.After a year like he had, that says something. It was eventful, often for unpleasant reasons such as his Miami Heat falling from the NBA mountaintop, a superstar friend deciding to leave the locker room they shared and a team rebuilding project.For him, 2014 was like none other.It was just a different year, Wade told The Associated Press. Every year you go into a new one, you do the New Years Eve resolutions and you sit there and think Yeah, this going to be the year. What I like to see from myself is how I respond to the moments where its not the highs. I know how I respond to the highs. But how do I respond in moments of truth?Hes finding out.The Heat are 14-19 as the calendar flips to 2015, barely hanging on to the No. 8 spot in a weak Eastern Conference. LeBron James is wearing a Cleveland uniform now. Miami lost 12 games in December alone, and thats after Wade lost millions in an effort to keep the teams championship core together last summer.How much he lost, only time will tell. He was guaranteed $41 million from the Heat through 2015-16 before opting out; his current deal assures $31 million over that span. The 32-year-old Wade could be a free agent again this summer, since next seasons contract is at his option.Ill be all right, Wade said with a shrug.It cost me a lot. But it wasnt The Decision that cost me, the three-time champion said of his opt-out move, and James choice to leave for Cleveland. It was my decision. I opted out for the better of the team, not for any individual. I opted out for the better of the team and it cost me some money. Im not concerned about it. Not overly concerned, anyway.This is when he reveals that hes happy, even with the Heat struggling.He has coaching privileges in practice now. If he doesnt like something, he can stop the play, correct and teach. Hes been encouraged to pull players aside and tell them what he wants, since what he wants and what the Heat want are almost always in perfect alignment.He has that experience, that impact with his voice, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. Hes been great in embracing that. Its the most leadership thats required of him since hes been here.Wades business deals keep growing and his marketability isnt suffering. He got married again last year, tying the knot with actress Gabrielle Union after years of dating. Hes a de facto father of four now; three of his kids, plus raising a nephew.And he can still play.Wade entered Thursday sixth in the NBA in scoring this season, at 23.2 points per game. Hes shooting 51 per cent. Among those who have taken at least 400 shots, only Anthony Davis and Nik Vucevic, big men who do most of their work at the rim, are shooting at a better clip.In my professional life, I got comfortable in a role and I thought maybe this is it, maybe this is how I end my career, Wade said. And then it changed and Im showing myself that I can still do the things I want to do. And my family, starting over as well. Its my second time getting married. Lets see if I can do it right this time, do it better.In separate interviews, Wade and Union referred to the changes in his life the same way — as a rebirth.Its a rebirth that came out of a reevaluation of life and priorities and needs and wants, Union said. And whats emerged like a rising from the phoenix is something so dope, I couldnt even imagine.Wade and Union spent most of the past two years remodeling their home, a process that took longer than either of them wanted or expected but they wound up pleased with the results. 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Virginia advanced to the ACC semifinals for the first time since 1995 by pulling away to beat Florida State 64-51 in a quarterfinal Friday. Joe Harris matched a season high with 20 points and Anthony Gill added 16 for the top-seeded Cavaliers (26-6). They shot 48 per cent, forced 15 turnovers and earned their third double-digit victory over the Seminoles this season while winning their 14th in 15 games. "We really just wanted to go out there and prove to everybody that we deserve to be here, we deserve the No. 1 seed," Gill said. Okaro White scored 17 points and Aaron Thomas added 13 for the ninth-seeded Seminoles (19-13). They shot 43 per cent against one of the nations best defences but couldnt keep the Cavaliers off the boards when it counted most, and were denied their third victory over a top-seeded team since 2009. A victory would have gone a long way toward propelling them back into the NCAA tournament. Instead, the Seminoles can only sweat it out until selection Sunday. "Our record speaks for us to be on the bubble, but I think were a great team," White said. "We had a tough time throughout the course of the season, but I think weve shown everyone were a team that should be out there. I think were a team thats up to the level of a lot of the teams that are going to be in the NCAA tournament, but its hard." Virginia established a 31-25 rebounding advantage -- 21-13 in the second half -- and finished with 17 second-chance points. "We talk about outlasting people all the time," freshman London Perrantes said. "We know that nobodys going to want to guard us 35 seconds every time down the court, so we know that if we keep running our offence, theyre going to get frustrated and were going to get good shots." White pulled Florida State to 61-49 with his jumper through contact with 3:25 left.dddddddddddd. But he missed the free throw and the Seminoles didnt hit another field goal the rest of the way. Virginia will face fifth-seeded Pittsburgh, which beat No. 15 North Carolina 80-75, on Saturday in the first semifinal. Thats unfamiliar territory for a Cavaliers program that hadnt reached the semifinals in nearly two decades -- the longest drought in the conference. In matching a league record with 16 conference victories, Virginia earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament for just the second time and first since 1981. The Cavaliers only tournament title came in 1976 and until Friday they had won only four ACC tournament games since that last semifinal appearance -- and none since 2010. "Weve done a lot of things that we havent done for years," Perrantes said. "So for this to happen for us now is definitely a relieving experience." They led for all but about eight minutes of this one and were in control throughout -- even if it took a while for the scoreboard to finally reflect that. "Its very hard to come back on a team like Virginia when theyre coming down and using 30 seconds of the shot clock," White said. "You cant get down on them." Harris, who matched the season high of 20 points against Hampton on Nov. 26, was 7 of 12 and hit at least half of his shots for the first time since a win against Maryland on Feb. 10. "He has a good feel when to let it come and when to be assertive," ACC coach of the year Tony Bennett said. "He senses. He doesnt get it right all of the time (but) he senses when something is required of him." Virginia pushed its lead into double figures for the first time on Gills free throw with 13:57 left that made it 43-33. Harris bounced in a 3-pointer four possessions later to make it 48-37, Darion Atkins followed that with a jumper and then hit two free throws to make it a 15-point game with 9:51 remaining. Ian Miller finished with 10 points for the Seminoles. ' ' '