MIAMI – Terrence Williams received the obligatory boos from the fans in Miami after decking LeBron James late in the third quarter. Privately, Williams’ teammates were cheering figuratively.

Someone on the Nets had to do something to stop the Heat and Williams said, “I was the one who raised my hand first.”

The Nets were on their way to another loss when Williams said enough is enough and stopped James from what was sure to be another flashbulb-popping dunk. He and Dwyane Wade produced several in the Heat’s 101-89 victory over the Nets.

James was heading for a breakaway as the clock was winding down to 30 seconds left in the third when Williams sped up and bumped him with his shoulder. James went flying out of bounds. The King was down and his minions were concerned.

Then he stood up, made one of the foul shots and before the quarter ended buried two three-pointers in Williams’ face.

The game was over then, but it was the start of something. For the Nets’ sake, they should hope it’s the start of them showing some toughness. It is something they sorely need.

“That’s a good NBA foul,” Brook Lopez said. “I think we need more of that. There were some plays where I could have taken a foul instead of letting them getting a layup or dunk. I think that’s something we need more of, more toughness.”

It should have been done before then, long before then. The Heat were getting into the paint anytime they wanted, making a mockery of the Nets’ defense.

Lopez is right. He should have committed a foul or contested more shots instead of letting James and Wade get to the hole untouched. The same goes for Kris Humphries and Troy Murphy. These are veterans who know they have to protect the paint.

We are not suggesting the Nets hurt anyone, but they don’t want the reputation for being a soft team.

Remember all the stuff Chris Douglas-Roberts said last season about the Nets being soft. It upset people, but he was right.

Nets coach Avery Johnson can’t want his team to be considered soft. He wasn’t soft as a player, tried to make the Mavericks more physical when he was coaching them and has talked often about the Nets needing to raise their physicality.

It may not have made a difference in this game. The Heat probably would have won anyway, but the above-the-rim plays, behind-the-back passes and behind-the-head-lobs demoralized the Nets and brought the crowd to its feet.

It’s hard enough to withstand one or two of those plays on the road. The Heat had to come close to compiling a top-10 list just from this one game.

“I’m a New Jersey Nets basketball player,” Williams said. “You’ve got to put your foot down somehow in a basketball game. When people are going to the hole and throwing behind the back and dunking and stuff like that you’ve got to do something about it. It’s nothing against LeBron.”

Williams is right. He should have ended it there, but he said James exaggerated a little and never should have fallen out of bounds. James was told about that and now is looking forward to playing the Nets again.

“It’s awesome,” James said. “I’ll be ready for it.”

The Nets have to be ready for playing harder, playing defense harder, being mentally stronger, toughening up all the way around.

They’re a new team, a young team, a work-in-progress –- we get all that. But that doesn’t mean you can’t draw charge now and again, play a little more physically. The worst thing you can be considered is soft. The Nets aren’t there yet, but they know they can’t get that reputation.

“There’s no need to panic,” Devin Harris said. “We just got to protect our basket a little better. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a hard foul. It could be a charge or a blocked shot. But we can’t let them lay the ball up without repercussions.”
 
Williams took a stand. Like Lopez said, the Nets need more of that.

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Just like they did in Orlando on Friday, the Nets played the Heat tough for two-plus quarters. The Heat ended the third on a 23-8 run.

Lopez struggled again. He was just 5-for-16 and 1-for-9 with six points after the first quarter. The Nets need more from Lopez, need him to play more aggressively and make his presence felt on both ends of the floor. He had just three rebounds –- five Nets had more than he did and all are shorter.

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The Heat’s Big Three of Wade, James and Chris Bosh scored 29, 23 and 21 respectively.

Anthony Morrow led the Nets with 25. Harris had just six points and one assist.

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Coach’s Corner

“We’ve got to have better collective performances. One night we get one guy, the next night we get another guy. We’re not good enough to have five guys take nights off. We’ve got to have a better collective effort and as we move on we hope to

- Johnson on what he told his team after the game

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Follow me on Twitter: @Al_Iannazzone

Al Iannazzone covers the Nets for The Record (Bergen County, N.J.)