Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Miami Heat Defeat Atlanta Hawks 113-109
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Summary
Last night, the Miami Heat clinched the 1-seed in the Eastern Conference. If you were expecting an old-school team that prides itself on its culture to rest players, then you would be sadly mistaken. Fresh out of NBA Health & Safety Protocols, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra made it clear he wanted his team to stay sharp.
Juxtaposed to the Heat's scenario, the Atlanta Hawks were battling for Play-In Tournament seeding. What resulted was a tight game that went down to the final minute. Unfortunately, the tougher, deeper, and ultimately better team won 113-109.
Once again, hoops fans were treated to a Trae Young masterclass. The future All-NBA point guard (still speaking it into existence) scored 35 points in the losing effort. Bogdan Bogdanovic provided 25 points off the bench.
As a team, the Hawks shot just 23.5% from deep. While that was unhelpful, it wasn't the determining factor in the loss. It was an inexplicable lack of execution in the final few minutes of the game. The Hawks coughed up a 6-point lead, and the Heat never looked back.
Bad Adebayo led a well-rounded Heat effort with 24 points. They shot 55.6% from the field and 42.3% from deep. The better team found a way to win while the Hawks continued to invent new ways of losing. One team is first in the East, while the other is ninth.
Post-Game Interviews
Hawks head coach Nate McMillan said, "Tonight, we didn't execute the last five minutes of the game. Their pressure, I thought, sped us up. We had some turnover late in this game. That was the difference in this game."
McMillan said his team's defense played "well enough" to win. But he harkened back to their failure to execute. "We didn't execute as far the defense they were playing, the targets we wanted to go at and getting the proper spacing, and making the play."
Trae Young seemed calm after the disappointing loss. "Any team that can get the crowd into it and it's close, it's going to be a tough game."
When asked about De'Andre Hunter's poor offensive performance, Young said, "Yeah, I just talked to him. I told him he's going to bounce back from this game. I mean he's a pro. He treats everything - his rehab, everything he's gone through he treats like a pro. I feel like he's not going to have two games like he did tonight."
The Hawks final game of the regular season is Sunday afternoon in Houston. We will spend most of that time scoreboard watching to see how the Play-In Tournament seeding shakes out. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's AllHawks.com for breaking news, highlights, and analysis.
Stats
Hawks Leaders
Trae Young - 35 PTS, 8 AST
Bogdan Bogdanovic - 25 PTS, 7 REB
Clint Capela - 17 PTS, 14 REB
Hornets Leaders
Bam Adebayo - 24 PTS, 6 REB
Jimmy Butler - 20 PTS, 4 REB
Kyle Lowry - 16 PTS, 5 REB
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