Pat Riley began an indefinite leave of absence Wednesday because of hip and knee problems, choosing assistant Ron Rothstein to fill his spot on an interim basis.

Dwyane Wade made a vital late steal in leading the Miami Heat into the Eastern Conference finals with a 106-105 home victory over the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday.

Dwyane Wade was sensational as usual, but it was the play of Antoine Walker and Udonis Haslem during a key stretch of the third quarter that gave Miami the cushion it needed to hold on for its third straight victory.

The Miami win deadlocked the series at 1-1 heading north to the Meadowlands, but more important, it showed how Wade continues to expand his game.

Playing with a sore calf, Dwyane Wade hit a spinning jumper with 1:04 left to halt a frantic Chicago rally, then blocked Ben Gordon's layup 38 seconds later to help the Heat beat the Bulls.