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Third time's the charm as Hawks withstand Heat

Jan 21, 2014 - 4:47 AM Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) - Paul Millsap had 26 points and the Atlanta Hawks, back from their London trip, snapped a nine-game losing streak against the Miami Heat with a 121-114 win on Monday.

It was Atlanta's first win over Miami since Jan. 2, 2012.

DeMarre Carroll added 19 points, Pero Antic scored 17 and Kyle Korver hit a key 3-pointer down the stretch for the Hawks, who snapped a two-game overall losing streak and won for only the third time in their last eight.

They snapped a seven-game home losing streak against the Heat despite getting just two points from Jeff Teague, who averages more than 16. Teague checked out for the last time with 5:46 remaining in the third quarter and was 1-for-7 from the field.

Atlanta had 33 assists on 42 field goals.

LeBron James led Miami with 30 points, Chris Bosh scored 21 and Mario Chalmers had 17. The Heat were missing Dwyane Wade (knee) for the second straight game, and for the first time in the last five, but Chris Andersen (knee) returned from a three-game absence to score eight.

Miami had been 2-0 against the Hawks this season, with both of the wins coming at home, including a 121-119 overtime victory on Dec. 23.

Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said you can't predict how a team is going to respond from a long trip.

The Hawks, after losing to Brooklyn 127-110 in London last Thursday, scored 71 points in the first half and yet led the Heat by just one.

"I don't think there are going to be a lot of defensive highlights for either team," said Korver. "That's a season-ending highlight reel. But I mean both teams made shots. It was a up-and-down game."

Budenholzer told his players during the break that one team was going to make more stops in the second half and that "we wanted to be that team."

Miami, the NBA's top shooting team, was 31-of-61 between the first and third quarters and just 7-of-17 in the fourth.

"I'm just happy with the competitiveness of our group, competing defensively and playing unselfishly," said Budenholzer. "Thirty-three assists is a real positive for our group."

The Heat had a 107-104 lead with 6 1/2 minutes left after James made back-to- back 3s. But turnovers and good Atlanta defense plagued them late.

Chalmers threw the ball away and Millsap made two free throws for a four-point lead. After Millsap blocked Bosh down low, Carroll's layup extended it to six.

Later, Korver's 3 from the left corner turned a two-point lead into a five- point spread at 119-114 with under a minute to play and James threw a pass out of bounds at the other end, all but sealing Atlanta's win.

The Heat went 2-4 on a six-game road trip.

"All across the board, A through Z, there just wasn't a lot of pride on that side of the court," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "We tried to win it on a shootout tonight. And then when our offense came up dry on the road toward the end, a couple missed shots and turnovers and we weren't able to secure the win."

The Heat fell behind early after a 13-5 Atlanta run to open the game and were down 34-31 after the first quarter. The Hawks used a 13-4 run to build a 50-38 lead and were still up 12 midway through the second quarter before Ray Allen and Bosh scored all 12 points during a 12-2 Heat run.

All five Heat starters scored in double figures in the first half, led by 14 from James, Allen and Chalmers. Millsap had 20 points for the Hawks, who took a 71-70 lead into the break.

Game Notes

Korver extended his NBA record to 109 games with at least one made 3-pointer. He was The Heat open a four-game homestand Tuesday against Boston ... The Hawks are at Atlanta on Wednesday.