Indianapolis, IN (My Sportsbook) - The Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat play the opener of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal set tonight at Conseco Fieldhouse.

This is the first time that the squads have met in the postseason. Game 2 is scheduled for Saturday at Conseco Fieldhouse.

The Pacers, who last played on April 25, showed why they are the top-seeded team in the Eastern Conference in the first round of the playoffs, as they crushed the Boston Celtics and eliminated them in four straight games. Indiana won all four games over the Celtics in double figures. The average margin of victory was almost 17 points per game.

Indiana earned its first sweep since 1999, when it dismissed the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Pacers, who are appearing in the playoffs for the 14th time in 15 seasons, improved to 1-3 against the Celtics in first-round playoff matchups, and avenged a 4-2 setback to Boston in last year's opening round.

All-Star Jermaine O'Neal and Ron Artest, who did not play in Game 2 against Boston because of a suspension stemming from an incident in the first game of the series, came up big for the Pacers in the first round. O'Neal averaged 19.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in four games, while Artest led the team in scoring (20.3 ppg) and pulled down five boards an dished out 4.3 assists per game in his three contests.

Artest frustrated Boston's All-Star forward Paul Pierce defensively. Pierce averaged 18.7 points per game and shot just 30.2 percent from the field in the series. O'Neal provided tough play on the inside for the Pacers, who were simply too strong in every aspect for the Celtics.

Indiana, which had been eliminated three straight year's in the first round, last appeared in the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2000, when it eliminated the 76ers in six games. The Pacers, who defeated the Knicks in six games in the conference finals that year, would go on to lose in the NBA Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Pacers are 5-0 all-time in Eastern Conference semifinals series.

The fourth-seeded Heat advanced to the semis when they eliminated the New Orleans Hornets in seven games in the opening round. The home team won all seven games in the series.

Forward Lamar Odom and rookie Dwyane Wade, who knocked down a game-winning jumper with 1.3 seconds left in Game 1, were huge factors for Miami against the Hornets. Odom led the team in scoring (16.3 ppg), while Wade averaged 15.4 points and distributed a team-high 5.6 assists per games.

Veteran Eddie Jones and second-year forward Caron Butler also played well in the opening round for the Heat. Jones finished the series averaging 15 points and 4.1 boards, while Butler checked in with 14.7 points and a team-high 9.1 rebounds per game.

The Heat, who were 29-12 as the host during the regular season, do not have the luxury of the homecourt advantage in this round. Miami, which has lost six straight playoff games on the road, was just 13-28 as the visitor during the regular season. The Heat's last road win in the postseason was on May 12, 2000 against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Miami is appearing in the conference semis for the first time since 2000, when it fell in seven games to New York. The Heat are 1-1 all-time in the Eastern semifinals.

Indiana won all three meetings between the two squads during the regular season. The Pacers defeated the Heat twice at Conseco Fieldhouse and once at AmericanAirilines Arena.

Overall, the Pacers have won nine in a row over the Heat in the regular season. Miami's last win over Indiana was a home victory on January 19, 2002.