Butler drops 36 as Heat roll over Hawks to nail 3-1 lead

Jimmy Butler posted 36 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals as the Miami Heat defeated the host Atlanta Hawks, 110-86, in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series on Sunday, April 24 (Monday, April 25, Manila time).

Miami leads the best-of-seven series, 3-1. The Heat can clinch the series on Tuesday night in Miami.

Hawks star Trae Young, who led the NBA this season in total points and assists, had a quiet night. Young finished with 9 points and 5 assists, and he was charged with 5 turnovers. He shot just 3-of-11 from the floor, including 3-of-10 on three-pointers.

The Hawks were led by De’Andre Hunter, who scored 24 points on 9-for-13 shooting, including 4-of-6 on 3-pointers.

Heat star Tyler Herro scored just 3 points on 1-for-8 shooting. But the Heat got 14 points each from PJ Tucker and Bam Adebayo.

Miami played without starting point guard Kyle Lowry, who suffered a hamstring injury in Game 3. Lowry was replaced by Gabe Vincent, who posted 11 points and 4 assists.

Starting center Clint Capela returned for Atlanta, posting 2 points and 7 rebounds. He had been out since suffering a right-knee injury on April 10 in a play-in game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Hunter led Atlanta to a 26-25 first-quarter lead. Hunter had a quarter-high 11 points on 4-for-4 shooting, including 3-for-3 on three-pointers.

With 16 seconds left in the first quarter, Atlanta’s Onyeka Okongwu made a spectacular block on Butler, forcing a jump ball.

The second quarter featured a 9-0 Hawks run, giving them a 35-27 lead. But Miami answered with a 15-0 stretch, taking a 55-41 lead into halftime.

In the third quarter, Tucker was charged with a technical foul after he jostled with Okongwu.

Even so, the Heat stretched their lead to 80-61 by the end of the third quarter.

Miami cruised in the fourth quarter and the Heat finished with a 48-26 edge in paint points for the game.

The Heat, charged with just 7 turnovers in the game, shot 43.5% from the floor, including 13-for-42 on three-pointers (31%).

Atlanta shot 40% from the floor, including 15-for-42 on three-pointers (35.7%). – Rappler.com