Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Now it’s nine in a row
Miami pummels Atlanta in dominating effort
The surging Heat defeat the Atlanta Hawks, 116-93.
MIAMI — Has there ever been a better 20-30 team in the NBA?
Because this one has built that record with what now is a ninegame winning streak, as the Miami Heat powered past the Atlanta Hawks, 116-93, Wednesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Work, of course, remains, plenty of work from what was an 11-30 record at midseason. But this was another affirmation, against one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference, that this is more than smoke and mirrors, a winning streak that now includes victories over the Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors and now a Hawks team that entered with victories in 13 of their previous 17.
The nine-game winning streak ties for the third longest in the NBA this season, behind only a 12-game streak by the Warriors and a 10-game streak by the San Antonio Spurs.
There again were plenty of the now familiar elements of this win- ning streak.
The starting backcourt again set the tone, Goran Dragic closing with 27 points, Dion Waiters with 20.
There was a doubledouble from center Hassan Whiteside, who outplayed Dwight Howard, closing with 18 points and 18 rebounds, his 30th doubledouble of the season.
And there was the requisite bench vitality, this time with James Johnson providing 16 points.
And when the going got rough, the Heat stood up for themselves, as well, James Johnson ejected for rushing to Whiteside’s side after the Heat center was taken down by a Flagrant 2 foul by the Hawks’ Taurean Prince midway through the fourth quarter, a foul that also left Prince ejected. Waiters also received a technical foul on the play.
By the midway of the third period the lead was up to 23 points, with the Heat dominating both in the paint and at the 3-point line, taking a 94-71 lead into the fourth quarter, as the home winning streak was extended to seven.
It reached the point where Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer emptied his bench to start the fourth quarter, all 13 of his players having seen action at that stage.
Next up is Saturday’s conclusion of this fourgame homestand, against the Philadelphia 76ers, with Joel Embiid’s status in question because of concern about his knees. From there, there is a four-game trip that could feature challenges at the start against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Milwaukee Bucks.
There was precious little resistance from the Hawks, Howard outplayed by Whiteside, Paul Millsap at 4 of 12 from the field through three quarters.
The Hawks now have lost five of their last six visits to AmericanAirlines Arena.
The second half opened as an extension of the first, with Dragic converting the free throw from the technical foul called on Millsap at the end of the second period. Dragic then drained a 3-pointer on the possession.
The Heat pushed to a 16-point lead in the second period and went into the intermission up 62-47, with the Heat 8 of 17 on 3-pointers to that stage and the Hawks already up to nine turnovers. The Heat ended the second quarter on a 9-2 run.
The Heat took a 29-22 lead into the second period, with Luke Babbitt contributing eight points in the first quarter, including a pair of 3-pointers. The Hawks, by contrast, were 0 for 5 on 3-pointers in the first quarter.
Tyler Johnson, in his second game back from his shoulder issue, returned to his sixth-man role.
This was the third game of the four-game season series that concludes Feb. 24 in Atlanta, in the Heat’s first game after the All-Star break.
The Hawks won the first meeting, 93-90, Nov. 15 at AmericanAirlines Arena, in a game the Heat were without Dragic, a night Whiteside closed with 19 points and 25 rebounds. The Hawks then won, 103-95, Dec. 7 at Philips Arena, when Howard closed with 23 points and 17 rebounds.
While Babbitt was back from the ankle issue that took him out for the finish of the Heat’s previous game, the Heat remained without Josh Richardson (foot), Justise Winslow (shoulder), Josh McRoberts (foot) and Chris Bosh (blood clots). The Hawks were without Thabo Sefolosha (groin) and Tiago Splitter (calf ).