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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
ATLANTA (AP) -- Eddie Jones had just put together one of his most complete games of the season, but the Miami guard was still mad about missing a free throw the night before.
|  | | Dikembe Mutombo, left, battles Miami's Eddie Jones for a rebound. Jones outrebounded Mutombo 12-10. |
Jones scored 24 points and Tim Hardaway added 18 as the Heat won for the sixth time in seven games, 91-80 over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.
Miami was coming off a 95-91 overtime loss at Dallas on
Thursday, due in part to Jones' making only one of two free throws
with 11 seconds remaining in regulation. The loss ended the Heat's
16-game winning streak over the Mavericks.
"I can't believe I missed a free throw," said Jones, whose effort Friday included a season-high 12 rebounds, a team-high five assists and an 8-for-8 effort at the foul line. "I've never missed a free throw down the stretch."
Miami coach Pat Riley was pleased to see his team recover from
the previous night.
"I thought we came back, bounced back from a tough loss last
night," he said. "We did some things that were absolutely
miserable last night. We just dug in. We have a lot of guys that
are banged up, dented and nicked. It was a gutty win for us
tonight."
Hardaway, coming off a 21-point performance at Dallas, left
midway through the third quarter after injuring his right knee. He
returned in the fourth wearing an elastic brace.
Jason Terry scored 31 points for the Hawks, who lost their third
straight game to Miami. After the Heat took their biggest lead,
80-68, on Dan Majerle's 3-pointer with 5:42 remaining, Terry hit
consecutive baskets that helped the Hawks close within 80-76 two
minutes later.
"We couldn't get over our woes in the fourth quarter," Terry
said. "It's been that way all year long."
Bruce Bowen ended Atlanta's comeback attempt by hitting a
3-pointer with 1:46 to go, giving the Heat an 87-78 lead.
"You have to put the dagger in when it's time to put the dagger
in," Hardaway said. "Everybody was playing well, especially on
defense."
The Hawks have lost seven of nine games. They were outrebounded
51-38 and outscored 25-10 at the foul line. Atlanta missed all six
of its 3-point attempts.
"We had a little run at them, but I don't think they were too
worried," Hawks coach Lon Kruger said. "We've got a long way to
go. We've got a lot of work to do. We were a little careless with
the ball sometimes. We just have to keep working."
Hardaway began the third quarter with a pair of 3-pointers to
give the Heat a 10-point lead.
Lorenzen Wright had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta.
Game notes
Hawks C Dikembe Mutombo blocked two shots to increase his career total to 2,543 and move into a tie with Tree Rollins for sixth place on the career list. ... Terry is averaging 21.6 points
over his last 33 games. ... Heat F Brian Grant, who had 16 points and 13 rebounds, left the game briefly at the end of the first quarter after falling and injuring his right knee. He returned in the second quarter wearing an elastic brace. ... Miami joined Portland and Philadelphia as the only teams with 10 victories in the second game of back-to-backs.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Miami Clubhouse
Atlanta Clubhouse
RECAPS
Indiana 103
Denver 94
Orlando 123
Philadelphia 117
Miami 91
Atlanta 80
New York 95
New Jersey 71
Boston 102
Detroit 95
LA Lakers 93
Charlotte 87
Sacramento 105
Vancouver 95
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