Hawks turn up heat on Miami
MIAMI (Reuters) - The Atlanta Hawks ended a 17-game road losing streak by rallying from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat the Miami Heat 82-79 on Wednesday.
Atlanta had lost 14 of 15 games against the Heat and won in Miami for the first time since 2002, Josh Smith blocking a potentially game-tying layup attempt by Dwyane Wade with 3.9 seconds left to seal the victory.
Joe Johnson scored 22 points to lead the Hawks, while Smith added 16 points and 11 rebounds. Marvin Williams had 13 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta.
"We just kept it close and that's all you want to do on the road, give yourself an opportunity to win," Atlanta coach Mike Woodson told reporters.
Miami (2-9) has lost eight straight home games and is 0-5 on their own court this season.
"I don't think there's any doubt that we're beginning to feel the pressure," Miami coach Pat Riley said.
Shaquille O'Neal had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Heat, and his seven blocks was his highest total in nearly three years. He also moved into 11th place on the all-time points list, passing Alex English.
Udonis Haslem and Ricky Davis added 17 points each for the Heat, and Wade, playing just his fourth game this season following knee surgery, went just 4-for-12 in scoring 14 points.
The Hawks shot only 35 percent in the game but stayed close for most of the night before out-scoring Miami 26-13 in the fourth quarter.
*The Washington Wizards got 39 points from Caron Butler, including seven in overtime, in a 114-111 win over the Charlotte Hornets. The Wizards found out earlier they would be without Gilbert Arenas for about three months after he underwent knee surgery.
*Boston improved to an NBA-best 9-1 record with a 105-82 thrashing of the Golden State Warriors. Kevin Garnett had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Celtics.
*The Dallas Mavericks rallied from a double-digit deficit for the second straight game to defeat the Houston Rockets 100-94, despite a 30 point, 15 rebound, six block performance from Yao Ming.
*Lebron James had 45 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 97-86.
*The New York Knicks lost their eighth straight game, dropping a 98-86 decision to the Detroit Pistons.
*The San Antonio Spurs improved to 10-2 with a 128-110 win over the Orlando Magic.
(Writing by Roger Lajoie in Toronto, Editing by Ed Osmond)
