Associated Press
ATLANTA ó Remember how bad Dwyane Wade and his Miami teammates looked in Game 1 of the playoffs? They were that good in Game 2.
Wade scored 33 points, 13 straight to close the first half before he banked in a 3-pointer with 21/2 minutes left to finish off the Atlanta Hawks in a 108-93 victory Wednesday night that evened the series before it headed to south Florida.
After scoring only 19 points to open the best-of-seven series Sunday in a 90-64 blowout, Wade eclipsed his point total by halftime.
After trailing by as many as 18, the home team twice closed within five points ó but never got over the hump. Wade delivered the decisive blow when, with the shot clock running down, he threw up a long 3. The shot was errant, but it banked in off the backboard and was just as good as a swish.
Wade’s shot pushed the Heat to a 101-91 lead, and the Hawks were done.
A handful of Miami fans who hung around to serenade Wade with chants of “M-V-3!” Unlike the loss in Game 1, when only one other Miami player scored in double figures, Wade had plenty of help this time. Daequan Cook scored 20 points, going 6-of-9 from 3-point range to make up for an 0-for-5 showing beyond the arc on Sunday night. Jermaine O’Neal scored 19 points on the inside. Michael Beasley added 12 and Udonis Haslem 10.
Mike Bibby led the Hawks with 18 points, but the home team shot only 44 percent from the field and struggled at the foul line, making 19-of-30.