The No. 7 Miami Heat tried to put together a second-half surge, but the No. 8 Atlanta Hawks held them off to win, 116-105, to kick off the NBA Play-In Tournament.
With their victory, the Hawks have earned themselves the No. 7 seed for the first round of the playoffs. They will head to Boston this weekend to face the Boston Celtics.
Trae Young wasn't listening to the murmur of trade rumors prior to tip-off, as he did what he does best: Lead the Hawks in postseason play.
Young finished the game with a team-high 25 points with seven assists and eight rebounds. He shot only 8-of-18 from the field, making only one of his nine three-point attempts. But he made 8-of-9 free throws and led the offense to where they wanted to go.
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Dejounte Murray was also an offensive key for the Hawks, dropping 18 points with five rebounds and six assists.
The Hawks were able to pull away early in the game, as the Heat’s mental and physical errors on their offensive end resulted in points for Atlanta. By the end of the first quarter, the Hawks were leading 36-27 and their lead heading into the locker room up 15 after outscoring the Heat, 65-50.
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Head coach Erik Spoelstra didn’t seem to have the right defensive gameplan for the Hawks, as Young looked too comfortable on the offensive end. Things could’ve been much worse, as Young only went 5-of-12 for 13 points – he missed all four three-point attempts.
But the Hawks’ bench made the best of their opportunities on the floor. Saddiq Bey had 11 points, with three three-pointers, while Bogdan Bogdanovic and Onyeka Okongwu both had 10 points in the half.
Kyle Lowry was feeling himself off the Heat bench, though, as he had a game-high 33 points on 11-of-16 from the field with six threes as well as four rebounds and five assists. Spoelstra had him take over in the second half, but the Hawks were able to answer when they needed to.
Tyler Herro also turned things up in the second half, finishing with 26 points on 12-of-23 shooting with six boards and two steals.
On the other hand, Jimmy Butler would like to change some shots on the night. He botched a few layups in the first half and ended up finishing the game with 21 points.
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He got to the free throw line as he normally does, hitting nine of his 11 attempts, but he only shot 6-of-19 from the field.
The Heat are not done with their season just yet. They have another opportunity to reach the playoffs, as they will host the winner of the No. 9 Toronto Raptors and No. 10 Chicago Bulls matchup on Thursday night in Miami.
That game will determine the eighth and final seed in the East.
