Hawks vs Heat final score: Shorthanded Atlanta falls 104-88

Healthy or not a team can't turn the ball over against the Miami Heat and have a chance to win. The Atlanta Hawks found this out the hard way Tuesday night as they turned the ball over 24 times enroute to a 104-88 loss to the defending NBA champs.

Atlanta hung tough early and took a 25-24 lead at the end of the first. Miami's defense started to clamp down somewhat in the second but the Hawks were still in the game trailing 48-45 at the half. The Heat hit their stride in the third quarter as their excellent defense of the pick and roll combined with some errant passes from the Hawks turned into easy opportunities at the other end. Miami outscored the Hawks 56-43 in the second half.

Mike Scott recorded his first double-double of the season leading the Hawks with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Pero Antic also added a season-high 12 points off the bench. Al Horford scored all 12 of his points in the first half and was saddled with seven turnovers on the night. Kyle Korver and Jeff Teague were also held in check finishing with nine points each.

Chris Bosh led the way for Miami with 19 points. Ray Allen contributed 17 off the bench while Mario Chalmers and LeBron James finished with 14 and 13 respectively.

Neither team played the game at full strength. Paul Millsap didn't make the trip to Miami with an elbow injury and is listed as day-to-day. Lou Williams also sat out due to the back-to-back but is expected to play Wednesday night against Detroit. Miami elected to hold out Dwyane Wade to rest his aching knee.

The loss drops the Hawks to 6-5 on the season. They won't have long to think about the loss as they are back in action Wednesday night against the Detroit Pistons at Philips Arena.