The Heat win streak was never in jeopardy.
Forty-one seconds into the game the Heat had a lead and never trailed en route to a 98-81 win over the Hawks on Tuesday night.
The victory was the 19th consecutive for the Heat. The home team dressed in white uniforms — perhaps to signify that they have gone from red to white hot.
The Hawks (34-29) continue to falter. They lost for the third consecutive time and sixth in the past seven games. It was also their seventh consecutive loss to the Southeast Division and Eastern Conference leading Heat in what could be a potential first-round playoff matchup, if the Hawks continue to fall down the standings. They remain seventh in the Eastern Conference, tied with the Celtics, both 1.5 games ahead of the Bucks for the final spot.
The Hawks committed a season-high 24 turnovers, 11 in the first half. It was an issue coach Larry Drew warned his team about entering the hostile environment.
“Very early in tonight’s game I thought we did a very poor job,” Drew said. “The first quarter we had six turnovers. That is a recipe for disaster on the road playing a team as good as Miami. We turned the ball over six times in the first quarter. We turned it over five times in the second quarter.
“This was one of those games where I thought we would have to play well all four quarters and we got off to such a rocky start turning the basketball over. Yet, we were still within striking distance. I told the guys at halftime, when you are playing against a team like this you have to take care of the basketball. That is the only way that you are going to be able to play in a rhythm to dictate the pace of the basketball game.”
Josh Smith scored 15 points for the Hawks. Al Horford and Jeff Teague added 12 points. All three did not play in the fourth quarter, Teague because of a sprained left ankle. Drew was clearly not pleased with the Hawks’ shot selection.
The Heat (48-14) won their 15th consecutive home game. Their last loss at the American Airlines Arena came Jan. 4. Their balanced attack, which led by as many as 22 points, was paced by Dwyane Wade with 23 points. LeBron James (15 points), Chris Bosh (14), Mario Chalmers (14) and Ray Allen (12) were the other double-digit scorers.
“We didn’t help ourselves,” guard Devin Harris said. “We didn’t play our best basketball. Obviously, they are playing well right now but we definitely didn’t help ourselves.”
The Heat led by 12 points eight minutes into the first quarter. The Hawks staged a rally with an 18-6 run over the first and second quarters. They tied the score, 28-28, on a 3-pointer by Kyle Korver. The Heat failed to score a field goal over the stretch of 6:13, settling for six free throws. The Hawks trailed by one point three different times in the second quarter, but never took the lead.
The Heat used a 10-0 run to regain a double-digit advantage. They took a 13-point lead, 57-44, into halftime. The final points came when Bosh sank a pair of free throws after being fouled by Smith with one-tenth of a second remaining.
“We lost our composure,” Drew said. “It was bad shot selection. The thing that got us back to where we were able to tie it, we totally abandon it. Against a good ball club you can’t do that. Hopefully we’ll learn from it. I keep saying that. Every time we get in these situations we have to learn from it. At some point we are going to have to learn from it. We are going to be put in these situations a number of times.”
Foul trouble was an issue for the Hawks from the start. The Heat were in the bonus by the first quarter and in the first half made 17 of 20 free throws. The Hawks, by stark contrast, were 2-of-2. In the end the Heat went to the free-throw line 30 times with the Hawks less than half that total with 14.
“We were going to the rim,” Smith said. “We just weren’t getting calls. It happens sometimes. It is what it is. We can’t hang our head or say that’s the reason why we lost. We were attacking the basket.”
Rebounding also was an issue in the early trouble. The Hawks were outrebounded 24-14 in the first half, including a 16-4 first-quarter disadvantage. They ended the game nearly even, 45-43, but the Heat had built too big an advantage.
The Heat scored 27 points off the 24 Hawk turnovers.
“They force you into a lot of tough decisions and they swarm,” guard Dahntay Jones said. “They put you into positions where you have to loft the ball across court and they are great in the passing lanes.”
The Hawks lost Teague to the ankle sprain in the third quarter. He was re-taped, and the team said his return was probable. However, the guard did not get back on the floor after the Heat pulled away in the final period. Teague said after the game he was not sure if he could play Wednesday against the Lakers and needed to wait to see how the ankle felt in the morning.
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