The Indiana Pacers took the floor for Game 6 against the Miami Heat on Saturday night with a simple goal. Win and force a deciding seventh game. Lose and the season would be over.

In a role reversal of what took place two nights earlier, the Pacers dominated the third quarter to take control of the game and remain alive. They outscored the Heat 29-15 in the third period, taking a 68-55 edge in the fourth.

Searching for an answer, Erik Spoelstra put Mike Miller into the game and we nearly witnessed another out-of-nowhere Mike Miller Game. He forced a turnover and then hit back-to-back threes to bring Miami to within 70-64 with 8:11 left.

David West, slowed by an upper respiratory infection, hit a 17-foot jumper about a minute later and the Heat never again got as close. After Miami used a 13-2 run to trim Indiana's lead to six, the Pacers responded with a 9-0 spurt to seal the 90-77 victory.

This series has been one for the ages, with just a single blowout and more than a handful of big-time playoff moments. As good as the first six games have been -- the outcomes no longer matter. It will all be on the line in Miami on Monday night.

The Heat were without Chris Andersen, who was suspended for a hit on Tyler Hansbrough in Game 5, but received good production from Joel Anthony. He has trouble finishing offensively, but had eight rebounds and three blocks. The problem? He didn't have a single rebound in 15 second-half minutes.

Miami might have missed Andersen's energy though, as LeBron James and Norris Cole were the only players on the team with any sense of urgency. They were 24 minutes from the NBA Finals, but seemed to lean on the fact that they had a Game 7 coming at AmericanAirlines Arena.

West was a step slow as you might expect. He was 0-for-7 in the first half, but waved off Frank Vogel when the coach looked to pull him. He had eight rebounds despite his struggles in the first two quarters and finished with 11 points and 14 boards.

The common refrain is that the Heat have all the pressure on their shoulders in Game 7, but that is not the case. The Pacers are very aware that they are one game away from the NBA Finals and that's as big a burden as anything else.

Hill Responds, Stephenson Up-And-Down

The Pacers needed a good game from George Hill and he responded with 16 points and six assists. He was much more aggressive than in Game 5, after which he admitted he was sort of just watching his teammates make plays on the road.

Lance Stephenson made an impact on the game, but still isn't scoring. In the last two games, he has scored a total of eight points on 3-for-11 shooting. He did a lot of little things on Saturday night though, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing four assists. I wrote after Game 5 that Indiana would need around 20 points and 10 rebounds from the duo to force a seventh game.

Hill and Stephenson combined for 20 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists and a steal (six turnovers). The stakes are now higher and Frank Vogel is going to need both players to score to win again down in South Beach.

Hibbert's Growth

He has been talked about a lot, but I haven't really dedicated much space to Roy Hibbert in my coverage of this series. He was phenomenal again in a must-win game, leading the way with 24 points, 11 rebounds and a blocked shot. Hibbert is such an intimidating presence in the paint that he isn't getting a chance to reject as many shots as he did during the regular season. His impact is much greater than his numbers in that respect, as it has been all season.

Hibbert grabbed five offensive rebounds, helping the Pacers outscore the Heat 14-5 in second-chance points. Another great night from the field (11-for-20) allowed the Pacers to win the paint battle 44-22 despite all missed layups and dunks they suffered in the first half.

It was obvious heading into the series that Hibbert was the key to Indiana's success, but you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone that was willing to predict he would be this consistently dominant. After signing a huge contract last summer, his numbers improved from poor to decent to good as the regular season progressed.

Hibbert took his game to another level in early rounds against the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks, but has shifted to an undiscovered gear against the defending champions. He is averaging 22.8 points and 10.8 rebounds on 55% shooting against Miami's smaller frontline.

He has always had this in him, but his affable personality seemed to prevent him from putting his talent on full display. He's almost unrecognizable from the player the Pacers acquired in 2008 and deserves credit and acclaim for all the hard work he has put in over the last five years.

Miami Cavaliers

Reggie Miller had some fun on the TNT broadcast when he referred to the Heat as the Miami Cavaliers, but in reality LeBron James may have to put the team on his back (like his days back with Cleveland) if they are going to face the San Antonio Spurs and for an opportunity to win their second consecutive NBA title.

Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have floated in-and-out of this series and were historically bad in Game 6. They combined to shoot 4-for-19 from the field and had 15 points and six rebounds between them. Ernie Johnson reported during the TNT postgame show that it was the lowest scoring total for the pair since they became teammates prior to the 2010 season.

Overall, Miami struggled to score. They scored 77 points on 36.1 percent shooting (a season low, regular or playoffs) after putting up 70 points in the first half alone last Sunday. If you remove LeBron's shooting line (10-for-21), the Heat shot 31.4. Oddly enough they made six of their first seven three-point attempts and finished 10-for-18 (55.6 percent) from deep. That means they shot 29.6 percent on two-pointers.

Aside from the first quarter when Miami caught fire from long range, the Pacers did a good job of closing out on shooters and clogged the paint enough to prevent penetration until the fourth quarter when LeBron decided it was time to put his head down and try to at least earn a trip to the foul line. There will be more of that in Game 7 as both teams look to impose their will.