• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Heat and Hawks clash in Atlanta

Feb 12, 2012 - 4:34 PM (Sports Network) - The Atlanta Hawks hope to tighten things up in the Southeast when they entertain division-leading Miami at Philips Arena.

The star-studded Heat lead the Hawks by two games entering tonight's contest and improved to 1-1 on a season-long, six-game road trip in the nation's capital on Friday. Dwyane Wade scored 26 points in that one to lift Miami to a 106-89 victory over woeful Washington.

Chris Bosh scored 24 points to go with 11 rebounds, while LeBron James added 18 points and nine assists for the Heat, who bounced back from a loss at Orlando on Wednesday to win for a fourth time in their past five games overall.

"We all had a good feel for the ball tonight," said Bosh. "The way you start is usually the way you're going to play for the rest of the night."

Miami, which is 8-5 as the visitor on the season, will also visit Milwaukee, Indiana and Cleveland on its current trek.

The Hawks have hung tough despite a litany of injuries, especially in the middle where centers Al Horford (torn left pec) and Jason Collins (sprained left elbow) remain sidelined.

Atlanta won its second straight contest on Friday in Orlando when Josh Smith scored 23 points and pulled down a season-high 19 rebounds as the Hawks escaped Amway Center with an 89-87 overtime win over the Magic

"I thought our guys did a great job in just responding to the challenge. We really wanted to come in here and play with aggression," said Atlanta head coach Larry Drew. "I thought we really did a great job."

Joe Johnson added 14 points and Marvin Williams and Jeff Teague scored 13 apiece for Atlanta, which has won the two straight since snapping a three-game losing streak on Wednesday.

The Hawks, who are 9-4 in the ATL on the season, are a perfect 7-0 when Smith scores 20-or-more points.

This will be the third meeting between the two clubs this season. Atlanta topped the Heat in South Florida back on Jan. 2 but Miami responded and won a triple-overtime contest in Atlanta three days later despite missing both James and Wade.