ATLANTA – The Miami Heat used team defense to smother All-Star point guard Trae Young, then leaned on Jimmy Butler to take the lead on the offensive end of the court Sunday night.
Butler scored 13 of his 36 points in a dominant second quarter, and the Heat beat the Atlanta Hawks 110-86 while again shutting down Young to take a 3-1 lead in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Miami, the top seed in the Eastern Conference, can wrap up the first-round series Tuesday night in Miami.
Miami ended Atlanta’s six-game home winning streak despite playing without point guard Kyle Lowry, who was held out with a left hamstring strain. Butler said some of his motivation to take the scoring lead was the need to fill the void left by Lowry’s injury.
“Everybody is in my ear about staying aggressive, taking more shots,” said Butler, who also finished with 10 rebounds, four assists and a blocked shot. “Tonight was a good one. We’ve got another one we’ve got to get.”