| |
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
 GAME FLOW
MIAMI (AP) -- Dan Majerle and Isaiah Rider staged a personal
3-point shooting battle in the fourth quarter, but Voshon Lenard's pinky may have been the difference.
|  | | Anthony Carter applies some defensive pressure on Atlanta's Bimbo Coles. |
Majerle's 3-pointer with 1:15 left proved to be the game-winner
as the Miami Heat defeated the Atlanta Hawks, 93-91 on Wednesday
night.
Alonzo Mourning scored 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but
missed two shots in the final 25 seconds that gave the Hawks a
chance to win with 5.9 seconds left.
Rider, guarded closely by Majerle, threw a hard pass that
deflected off Lenard's pinky, off teammate Bimbo Coles and out of bounds with 2.6 left.
"I tried to whip it by Lenard, but he got a pinky on it," said
Rider, who scored 11 of his 28 points in the final quarter.
"That's the way it goes. A half-inch more and he missed it and
Bimbo has the ball and the shot."
Lenard was fouled and made one of two to give Miami a 93-91 lead
with 1.7 left.
Rider, who scored 32 points in Tuesday's 113-106 Hawks' win,
missed a 35-footer at the buzzer that slammed off the backboard and
rim. The miss helped Miami secure its seventh straight home win
against the Hawks.
"Dan always seems to come up clutch," said Heat coach Pat
Riley. "He plays tough defense and always seems to be around big
plays at crunch time."
Dikembe Mutombo had 20 points and 18 rebounds for the Hawks.
Majerle scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter,
including consecutive 3-pointers in the final two minutes.
"I just kind of got it going," Majerle said. "I hit that
last-second one and just started feeling it."
Majerle's 3-pointer gave Miami a 78-76 lead with 5:55 left.
After Rider countered with a trey, Majerle hit two free throws
and fed P.J. Brown for an alley-oop dunk and an 82-79 lead.
Alan Henderson hit a driving layup and Lenard answered with an
18-footer as the shot clock expired, giving Miami an 84-81 edge
with 3:15 left.
Rider banked in a 12-footer, drawing Atlanta to within 84-83
with 2:56 remaining.
"That's all he (Majerle) does is shoot 3-pointers," said Hawks
coach Lenny Wilkens. "You have to make him put it on the floor.
You can't let him camp out at the 3-point line."
Tim Hardaway, who was out with a jammed right knee, missed his first game of the season. He will undergo an MRI Friday and is
expected to miss at least 4-5 days.
Rider's layup and two free throws, along with a 3-pointer by
Jason Terry, helped the Hawks to a 46-39 lead at halftime.
Game notes
After 22 lead changes in Tuesday's game, the Heat and Hawks
had another 18 Wednesday, including 11 ties. ... Miami committed
just three turnovers in the second half to Atlanta's 12. ...
Mourning scored over 20 points for the seventh straight game. ...
Hardaway, who reached his career 10,000 minute in Tuesday's game
against Atlanta, missed two games last season and just six in the
previous four. ... Pat Riley won his 200th game as coach of the
Heat (200-108) to become just the third NBA coach to win 200 games
with three different teams (Knicks, Lakers). Hawks coach Lenny
Wilkens and Bill Fitch are the others. ... Rookie point guard
Anthony Carter, getting his first career start because of Hardaway's injury, had eight points and eight assists. ... Miami is
4-0 in the second game of back-to-backs this season and was 16-4
last year.
| |
ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Atlanta Clubhouse
Miami Clubhouse
RECAPS
San Antonio 121
Boston 98
Washington 101
Philadelphia 93
Charlotte 89
Vancouver 73
Miami 93
Atlanta 91
Orlando 112
Dallas 100
Milwaukee 102
Chicago 95
Portland 88
Minnesota 81
Denver 109
Toronto 84
New Jersey 92
Golden State 84
LA Lakers 90
Utah 82
|
