Riley and the Heat hope to reverse course in South Florida

DALLAS, Texas (Reuters) - After two double-digit losses to open the NBA Finals, Miami Heat coach Pat Riley has a simple game plan for Game Three in Florida on Tuesday.

"Obviously, we'll have to play the game a lot better than we played it here in Dallas," a frustrated Riley said after his team's 99-85 defeat by the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday night.

The Mavericks' triumph in Game Two could have been a lot worse. Dallas was cruising with a 27-point advantage in the third quarter before Miami made the score respectable.

"Definitely, whatever adjustments we make over the next couple of days are going to have to work," said Riley. "So we're going home. There's no guarantee that that's going to make a difference."

Unless the Heat find a way to get center Shaquille O'Neal more involved in the game, there appears to be little chance it can rally and make this a competitive series.

The five-point effort by the 14-times All-Star was his lowest in 190 career playoff games. Perhaps more alarming to the Heat is that he only took five shots.

Dallas has two, sometimes three defenders harassing O'Neal whether he has the ball or not. O'Neal has been kicking the ball out to the perimeter but that is not how Miami plays.

Riley vowed to get O'Neal the ball more after the series opening 90-80 loss in which the NBA's best center took only 11 shots. Game Two was even worse.