The Miami HEAT fell to the Atlanta Hawks 99-86 Friday night at Philips Arena. Luol Deng led the way for the HEAT with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Impact Performance of the Night: Despite the loss, Luol Deng had a solid performance against the Hawks. Deng did most of his damage early on and fought hard inside for some tough finishes. He worked relentlessly to get open and his teammates often found him. Deng never gave up and did well on the offensive glass throughout the game. He finished with 17 points and 10 boards on Friday night.
The Deciding Run: The HEAT went on a 14-5 run to cut the Hawks’ lead to 96-81 with 6:24 left in the game. Although Miami fell short in the end, it was good to see the team fight back.
Earlier, the Hawks went on a 10-2 run to go up 48-30 with 3:05 left in the first half. Miami got some good looks, but they just weren’t falling.
Play of the Game: With 6:20 left in the first quarter, Dennis Schroder drove inside from the left wing. Goran Dragic stayed with him the whole way, measured the shot and swatted it out of bounds to save two points.
Another nice play came with 6:25 to go in the third quarter when Henry Walker swiped an errant pass from Al Horford. Udonis Haslem came up with it and launched it with one hand all the way down court to Dwyane Wade. Wade finished the dunk to cut Atlanta’s lead to 68-52.
Efficiency Rating: Offensive Efficiency: 88.1; Defensive Efficiency: 103.6
Trend to Watch: For the second consecutive game, Henry Walker came up big from beyond the arc. Walker hit four 3-pointers against the Hawks and finished the game with 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists. While he started off slow, he quickly picked it up in the second half. Walker has been a pretty solid outside threat for Miami, which has been very important during the team’s playoff push.
Also, Michael Beasley was active on the defensive end on Friday night, especially in the first half. He held his own against Horford, came up with a few blocks on Schroder and Shelvin Mack and often hustled back in defensive transition. Beasley had nine points, three boards and three assists against Atlanta.
The Takeaway: While the HEAT never led on Friday night, they tried to make a comeback in the fourth quarter. Mario Chalmers led the charge with 10 of his 13 points in the final period. James Ennis also did some damage in the fourth. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t enough.
For a majority of the contest, the Hawks showed just why they are one of the best teams in the league. Their spacing was very good, as they put pressure on Miami’s defense. Atlanta had an unreal 31 assists on 37 made field goals and that was tough to combat.
Look for the HEAT to get right back at it against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Notes: Hassan Whiteside (right hand laceration) and Chris Andersen (left calf contusion) sat out.