Hawks Escape Heat

     Udonis Haslem had his number 40 jersey retired by the Miami Heat as they fell to the Atlanta Hawks 109-108 at Kaseya Center on Friday night. The ceremony for Haslem took place at halftime. His banner joined Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in the rafters. 

     The Heat began their second half of the regular season while the Hawks reached the midway point. Miami had their 22-game home winning streak against Southeast Division opponents snapped. The last Heat home loss to a Southeast Division team was to the Hawks on March 2, 2021. 

     Atlanta(18-23) leaped out to a 15-9 advantage four minutes into the contest and led 32-24 at the end of one quarter. Miami(24-18) got a 10-2 spurt to start the second quarter to tie it up 34-34. The Hawks still remained in front 57-56 at halftime. 

     The Heat kept up with the Hawks and had a slight 83-81 lead at the end of the third quarter. Miami scored seven straight points and went on a 10-2 run late in the fourth quarter. The Hawks came back with five points in the final 30 seconds of the game. 

     Tyler Herro poured in 25 points for Miami. Jimmy Butler added 25 points while Bam Adebayo compiled 21 points and nine rebounds. Duncan Robinson was able to contribute 14 points. Dejounte Murray had a club-high 22 points and 11 assists to get a double-double for Atlanta.