ATLANTA – The Atlanta Hawks started the second half of the season with a road win, an environment they have been quite comfortable in this year. As of Friday, the Hawks were 17-15 on the road.
It's home games where they lag (10-16 record), and that was the case in their 128-97 loss to the Miami Heat. The Hawks took a flat approach to start the game, while the Heat were clicking on both sides of the ball.
It was the second quarter where the Hawks came alive, and with a run started by Corey Kispert and CJ McCollum, they saw a 15-point deficit disappear.
“We played with better pace,” McCallum said. “We came out and ran. I think in the first quarter, we got our sea legs back and we didn't come out and run. Didn't get a chance to get stops.
"In the second quarter, we came out and ran. Corey got a dunk and a transition three. Got some rim pressure, got some kick out three eyes out. I think that was the difference."
The Hawks trailed 57-51 at halftime and with little momentum. Unfortunately, they went back to their old habits and the Heat never looked back in the second half, taking a 34-point lead in the fourth quarter.
“They went into the zone to start the fourth quarter and I think that changed the game,” McCollum said. "They took advantage of some turnovers and missed shots. I don't think we did enough to win. [Tyler] Hero got down. He's got a lot more freedom, a lot more space in his pick and roll, and a lot more space in his pull-ups. I think a lot of guys hurt us tonight, and I think we didn't deserve to win this game.”
The Heat had 72 points in the paint to the Hawks' 38. They were defeated 58-46. Plus, they got 20 points off their turnovers. The only thing that went good for the Hawks in this game was that they shot 42% from the three-point line, but that was still not enough to win.
"I think when we follow the game plan, and we come out and execute the game plan, that's when we play our best. I don't think we did a good job of executing the game plan tonight," Jalen Johnson said.
The Hawks were coming up by one, but they didn't use it as an excuse for the loss.
"I would have liked to have gone to bed before 3 a.m. last night, but they beat us to it," McCallum said. "It's the same. They came out, they played better than us. They started well. They got points in transition, they got threes, they got rim pressure. Tonight they did what they wanted. So back-to-back or not, they did enough to win, and we didn't do enough."
The Hawks have four consecutive games to correct their mistakes for their home woes this season, and they are coming against opponents who haven't had the best performances this year.
Johnson said, "The opportunities are in front of us. We just have to go out there and get it. We got another chance to regroup on Sunday, and tomorrow we got a chance to watch film and get better."
