Dwyane Wade scored all 21 of his points in a lopsided first half, and the Miami Heat cruised past the Atlanta Hawks, 107-87, in a Southeast Division showdown at Philips Arena.
LeBron James chipped in 23 points, 13 rebounds and six assists, while Chris Bosh added 14 points and 16 boards for Miami, which was able to rest Wade and James for the entire fourth quarter and Bosh for all but 5:17.
The division-leading Heat led by as many as 32 against the second-place Hawks. They outscored them at the foul line, 26-6 and won the battle on the glass, 52-38.
Willie Green scored 17 points off the bench to pace Atlanta, while Joe Johnson netted 12 in defeat. Marvin Williams and Josh Smith combined for 14 points on 6-of-21 (29 percent) shooting.
The Hawks were coming off wins over Eastern Conference contenders Indiana and Orlando and were looking to cut into their two-game deficit in the standings.
Their quest was denied early and emphatically, as the Heat went an 11-0 run in the final 4 1/2 minutes of the first quarter. Their 30-18 lead ballooned to as many as 25 in the second following a Wade-fueled 22-4 spurt.
Wade scored 13 points during the late surge, including a three-point play for a 58-33 cushion with 74 seconds left before halftime.
"They came out with an aggression," Hawks head coach Larry Drew said. "We settled for jump shots too often in the first half, and they got out and ran."
It was 63-41 at the break, and Mario Chalmers went off for 10 of his 15 in the third quarter to maintain the healthy cushion. James' three-pointer with 4:02 remaining extended the margin to 81-49, and the visitors cruised from there.
While Bosh played a little over five minutes in the fourth quarter, Wade and James sat to rest up for road tests at Milwaukee and Indiana on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
"It's a great way to start [the three games in as many nights stretch] by being able to get some rest for our big guys," James said.
Game Notes
