Hawks upset Heat 116-105, advance to postseason with Play-In win

The Atlanta Hawks were in Miami to take on the Heat in the first play-in game of the night. The Hawks had control from the beginning, and took the win 116-105.

For the winner, they'll face the Boston Celtics in the playoffs, and the loser will still have a chance to get in the playoffs when facing the winner of the 9th and 10th seed game tomorrow.

The Hawks started out slow but got into a groove as the game went on. The and-1s were working for the team as they got two to go down for Trae Young and De’Andre Hunter.

The Hawks continued to take advantage of the Heat on both sides of the ball, and increased their lead, leading by nine points at the end of the first quarter.

Things got better as the second quarter progressed, as the Hawks bench stepped up and made big plays to increase the team's lead. Jalen Johnson finished through contact with this layup.

Onyeka Okongwu got it going as well, finishing with 10 points in the first half and controlling the paint.

Young got his floater to connect several times throughout the first half, including this tough one over Jimmy Butler later in the second quarter. The Hawks were clicking on all cylinders and had a 20+ point lead at one point.

The Hawks struggled with a few minutes left in the half but were still able to manage getting out with a 14-point lead.

Going into the third quarter, the Heat began their charge and cut into the Hawks lead more. Saddiq Bey got this tough bucket to go in the second half, trying to increase the Hawks lead to what it was.

The bench continued to go to work, and Johnson found Okongwu for this alley-top dunk, giving the Hawks a 13-point lead going into the fourth.

Johnson didn't waste time to make an impact in the fourth quarter and got up for this putback slam.

The Heat never gave up and continued to hit big shots to cut down their deficit, but the Hawks always had an answer for them. A big part of the game was rebounding, and Clint Capela was a monster on the rebounds.

Things were just working out for the Hawks however they could, as this tipped pass made it to Capela for an easy dunk.

The Hawks sealed the deal with this play, and took the game from there.

Young finished with 25 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, Murray finished with 18 points, Capela finished with 21 rebounds, and Bey, Bogdanovic, Okongwu, and Johnson finished with double digit points.

The Hawks have advanced to the playoffs and will face the Boston Celtics in the first round.