Field Level Media
Apr 4, 2018
Kelly Olynyk scored 19 points off the bench, and the Miami Heat beat the Atlanta Hawks for the second time in as many nights, 115-86 on Wednesday at Philips Arena in Atlanta.
Olynyk hit five 3-pointers, all coming in the second quarter, and Josh Richardson also scored 19 points for the Heat, who clinched a playoff spot with their Tuesday win over the Hawks.
With the win, Miami grabbed solo possession of sixth place in the Eastern Conference by a half-game over two teams that were idle Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks and Washington Wizards.
Taurean Prince led the short-handed Hawks with 20 points, and Damion Lee and Tyler Dorsey each finished with 15 points.
The Heat got a late block from Richardson to hold off the Hawks 101-98 on Tuesday. The Wednesday rematch wasn't nearly as close.
The Hawks were leading 36-28 early in the second quarter before the Heat got hot from 3-point range. Miami used a 17-2 run, featuring three 3-pointers from Olynyk, to grab the lead. Olynyk helped the Heat take a 53-47 lead into halftime.
Miami used another big run in the third quarter to take complete command. Rodney McGruder ignited an 18-4 Heat spurt with a 3-pointer, and Justise Winslow had eight points during the run. Miami took an 84-68 lead into the fourth quarter and was never seriously challenged down the stretch.
Winslow had 18 points, and McGruder finished with 14 points for Miami.
Atlanta shot 36.7 percent from the floor, committed 16 turnovers and was outrebounded 54-48. The Hawks have lost 13 of their past 15 games.
The Hawks, who have been playing for the future for months, had just eight healthy players against the Heat on Tuesday. Veteran guards Dennis Schroder (ankle) and Kent Bazemore (knee) are both sidelined for the rest of the season.
Miami heads to New York to take on the Knicks on Friday before returning home to close out the regular season against the Oklahoma City and Toronto Raptors.
Atlanta plays at Washington on Friday and at Boston on Sunday before the regular-season finale against visiting Philadelphia on Tuesday.
--Field Level Media