Hawks fall to Heat late, 113-109

The Atlanta Hawks were back in action on Friday night with a road matchup vs. the Miami Heat. The Hawks sorely needed a win as the Play-In standings in the Eastern Conference are still up in the air on the final weekend of the regular season. Atlanta was unable to get the win Friday in South Beach, falling by a score of 113-109 in a hard-fought loss.

The Hawks and Heat both got out to a bit of a slow start in the first quarter, with Miami holding a 24-22 lead heading into the second quarter. Clint Capela led the Hawks with eight points and five rebounds in the opening period.

Atlanta’s offense got into a nice rhythm in the second quarter, racking up 39 points on 56.5% shooting from the floor. Trae Young exploded for 17 points in the second, leading the Hawks to a 61-56 halftime lead.

Capela had 13 points and 10 rebounds in the first half, while Bogdan Bogdanovic had 15 big points off the bench.

Miami punched back in the third quarter, retaking the lead behind what was their best quarter of the game to this point. The Heat outscored Atlanta 35-26 in the quarter and took a 91-87 lead to the fourth. Young got up to 31 points and seven assists before the end of the third., while Kevin Huerter had nine points in the the period.

The Hawks’ bench answered the bell early in the fourth, going on a 10-2 run to start the quarter. Bogdanovic continued to carry that unit offensively.

The two teams played a tight one down the stretch from there. Bogdanovic and Huerter continued to hit big shots when the Hawks needed them.

The two teams were tied at 109 inside the final minute, when Kyle Lowry found Bam Adebayo for a dunk with 27.1 to go. The Heat lead 111-109, timeout Hawks.

Atlanta came up empty on their ensuing possession despite generating a decent look from three for Danilo Gallinari which would have given them the lead. The Heat hit a pair of free throws and took home the win from there.

Young finished with 35 points and eight assists (seven turnovers) in the loss, with Capela adding 17 points and 14 rebounds. Bogdanovic finished with 25 points off the bench.

Adebayo led the Heat with 24 points.

The Hawks will be back in action on the road for the final game of the regular season vs. the Houston Rockets.

Stay tuned.