LeBron James explodes as Heat rout Pacers in Game 5

MIAMI — You could sense the LeBron James power surge coming in South Florida.

As soon as the Miami Heat MVP fouled out at the end of the Indiana Pacers' Game 4 victory, you could feel him planning to unleash the full extent of his talents the next time out.

James delivered a masterful performance — his brilliance in the third quarter overwhelmed the Pacers — and Miami defeated Indiana 90-79 in Game 5 on Thursday. James had 30 points, eight rebounds , six assists, two steals and one block and gave the Heat a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

"That's LeBron showing his greatness and making it look easy," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "His engine in that third quarter was incredible. He was tireless. He was doing things on both ends of the court."

BOX SCORE: Heat 90, Pacers 79

SCHEDULE: East finals times, TV info

In the decisive third quarter, James had 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and accounted for 25 of Miami's points in a 30-13 quarter.

"I just went back to my Cleveland days at that point, and just said, 'Hey, let's try to make more plays and be more of a scoring threat as well,' " James said. "I was just in attack mode in the third quarter, looking for my shot."

In a back-and-forth series in which each team has made the right adjustments after a loss, Miami responded successfully to their Game 4 deficiencies with improved defense, better offense — strong three-point shooting — a commitment to rebounding and a determined James.

Now the defending champions are one win from third consecutive appearance in the NBA Finals, and the young Pacers face a mountainous task: win consecutive games, which no team has done yet in the series, and do it against a team that hasn't lost two consecutive games since January.

Game 6 is Saturday in Indianapolis (8:30 p.m. ET, TNT).

"We've got a great deal of resolve and a great deal of belief that we can win this series," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "Our backs are up against the wall again. Theirs were, they came back and responded. Took care of their business on their home court like they were supposed to. And it's up to us now to come back and get Game 6 (and) see what happens in a Game 7."

Miami rolled out its fast and furious offense in the final six minutes of the third quarter. Indiana led 51-49 midway through the third quarter, but the Heat outscored the Pacers 21-16 in the final 6:04. James scored 12 of those points, including a three-pointer with 16.1 seconds left in the third, giving Miami a 70-56 lead.

Several times throughout the series, Vogel has said it is near-impossible to defend James.

"He was pretty special tonight. There's no question about it. This whole team is special," Vogel said. "They're one of the best teams this league has ever seen. We're enjoying competing against them. We know we can beat them, but we have to play better than we did tonight."

PHOTOS: Top shots from Heat-Pacers series