By George Henry, Associated Press

ATLANTA — Joe Johnson wasn’t too concerned when Atlanta trailed Minnesota by 18 points late in the third quarter.

He could sense the Hawks were finally figuring out how to defend Kevin Love.

“We started focusing in on him and doubling him a lot more and trying to make it tough for him, but he’s a load down there, man,” Johnson said. “He did a great job of keeping them in the ballgame. He’s a hell of a player.”

Johnson scored 25 points, Ivan Johnson hit the clinching free throws with 4.6 seconds remaining and the Hawks rallied from 18 points down to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 93-91 on Saturday night.

Love missed a potential game-winning 3-point attempt at the buzzer, but finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds for Minnesota, which was trying to win consecutive road games for the first time since last Feb. 7-8 at New Orleans and Houston. The Timberwolves were coming off a seven-point victory Friday against the Hornets.

“It’s my fourth year in the league, so I’ve had a lot of teams come back us, especially last year, so you never feel like a game is over no matter how far ahead you are,” Love said. “‘We started to shoot too many jump shots and didn’t get the ball inside enough. Plus, it seemed like they hit every single shot down the stretch.”

Jeff Teague added 20 points and 10 assists for the Hawks, who overcame a season-high 20 turnovers to win their second straight game after losing Al Horford to a torn pectoral muscle that will sideline the starting center for three to four months.

“Every game is not going to be perfect,” Joe Johnson said. “You’re going to have to win them ugly sometimes, and tonight was definitely an ugly game. I’m just glad we came out on top.”

Rookie Ricky Rubio, starting his second game in the last two nights, had 18 points and 12 assists for Minnesota. With 3:40 left in the third quarter, Rubio’s 12-foot runner from the left baseline gave the Timberwolves the game’s biggest lead at 18.

Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman was nearly speechless after watching a fourth quarter in which his team was outscored 30-20, was outrebounded 12-8 and committed five turnovers to the Hawks’ two.

There were five lead changes and the score was tied six times in the final period, but Minnesota never led after Love’s two free throws made it 86-84 with 2:41 remaining.

“I don’t have anything to say,” Adelman said. “Our guys did everything they could to win that game and it just didn’t happen. That’s all I have to say.”

Atlanta brought in Ivan Johnson and Jason Collins to contest Love inside and used a zone defense to close the passing lanes, helping the Hawks go on a 23-2 run. Teague’s 3 capped the run with 8:48 remaining to put the Hawks up 76-73 and give them a lead for the first time since the game’s first minute.

Hawks 111, Bobcats 81

ATLANTA — Before the Atlanta Hawks took the court, Joe Johnson whispered a message to teammates Josh Smith and Jeff Teague.

“We have to take ownership,” Johnson said, “at both ends of the court.”

Clearly, they were listening.

Smith scored 30 points, Johnson added 23 and Teague chipped in with 16, leading the Hawks to a 111-81 rout of the Charlotte Bobcats on Thursday night in Atlanta’s first game without All-Star center Al Horford.

The Hawks learned earlier in the day that Horford, a leader on and off the court, will miss at least three months after tearing the pectoral muscle in his left shoulder going for a rebound the previous night at Indiana. That ensures he will miss nearly all the remaining regular-season games and perhaps be out into the playoffs — if Atlanta makes it that far.

“That was very disappointing news,” Smith said. “I actually heard it on the radio on the way to the game. It’s real devastating.”

But the Hawks must carry on, and they’ll be relying heavily on Smith and Johnson. Both came through big time against the hapless Bobcats, who lost their fifth in a row and dropped to 2-9.

“We all understand that we have to step our games up in some respect,” Johnson said. “It was a great team effort, collectively, around the room.”

Byron Mullens led the Bobcats with 21 points in his first career start.

Bucks 102, Pistons 93

MILWAUKEE — Brandon Jennings scored 27 points and Stephen Jackson had 25 to help Milwaukee beat Detroit. The Bucks improved to 4-0 at home and 4-6 overall, while the Pistons dropped to 2-9 with their sixth straight loss and fifth in a row on the road. Detroit last lost six straight from March 13-April 3, 2010. Bucks coach Scott Skiles became the 39th coach in NBA history to reach 400 victories. He is 400-388. Greg Monroe led the Pistons with a career-high 32 points and had 16 rebounds.

Cavaliers 101, Suns 90

PHOENIX — Prize rookie Kyrie Irving scored a season-high 26 points and Antawn Jamison matched his season high with 23, helping Cleveland beat Phoenix. Steve Nash led six Suns players in double figures with 16 points, becoming the 15th active player to reach 16,000 points. He also had 15 assists.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CHICAGO — With Derrick Rose having a big fourth quarter for the Chicago Bulls, everyone expected the reigning NBA MVP to take the final shot with the score tied. Instead, it was Luol Deng who got the game-winner in the closing seconds.

Deng’s layup with 3.7 seconds left lifted the Bulls to a 76-74 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night.

Rose scored 17 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter to rally the Bulls from a 19-point deficit. Coming out of a timeout, Deng cut along the baseline and took a feed from Joakim Noah to put Chicago ahead.

“At the end of practice, we always run (the play),” Deng said. “(Joakim) made a great pass. We had a feeling both of (the defenders) would go with Derrick.”

Turns out the play was designed for Rose after all.

“Obviously, we’re trying to get it to Derrick,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “They did a good job taking the first and second option away. Derrick set a great screen, (Noah) made a great pass and Luol made a great cut.”

The play caught the Hawks off guard as they were anticipating Rose to get the last shot.

“We all assumed that the ball was coming back to Rose,” Atlanta’s Al Horford said. “We were going to come and trap. That was a great play by their coach designed to take the pressure from Rose and hit Deng on the back. We didn’t expect that at all.”

Joe Johnson shot an airball at the buzzer, giving the Bulls the win.

Deng finished with 21 points for the Bulls and scored eight over the last four minutes after Atlanta re-established a lead.

“You can’t say enough about Luol,” Thibodeau said. “He does everything.”

Rose missed a runner with 21 seconds left, but Atlanta’s Jeff Teague missed two free throws. Rose then drove past Teague and scored over the Hawks’ Josh Smith with 9.9 seconds left to put the Bulls up 74-73.

Horford, who led the Hawks with 16 points, was fouled when Deng ran into him near the top of the key. Horford split two free throws with 7.7 seconds remaining, tying the score and setting up Deng’s heroics.

“We stopped defending with the intensity that we did in the first three quarters,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said. “We didn’t make our free throws going down the stretch. If you don’t make your free throws on the road you can’t expect to win.”

Marvin Williams added 14 points and Josh Smith had 13 for Atlanta, which shot just 35 per cent from the floor but held Chicago to 34 per cent.

The Bulls have won four straight and their 5-1 start is their best since opening 12-0 in 1996-97.

Rose scored 11 points early in the fourth, including three three-pointers. His pullup three cut Atlanta’s lead to two with 8:15 to play and capped the Bulls’ 20-3 run.

“We were right there with them,” Horford said. “We dominated for most of the game. Just Derrick Rose happened.”

Two minutes later, Rose passed to Deng for a three in the corner, evening the score at 62 for the game’s first tie.

“I was saying something the whole game, cursing and everything,” Rose said when asked if he said anything between the third and fourth quarters to fire his team up. “We got things together at the right time.”

Johnson answered with a three of his own to spark a six-point Atlanta run. Chicago closed the gap to one on a series of free throws by Deng, setting up the stretch run.

The Bulls had won three straight coming in and were coming off a 40-point rout of Memphis on Sunday but didn’t lead until Rose’s spectacular crossover move and layup to put Chicago up 72-71 with 57.9 seconds to play.

The Hawks played in a back-to-back game for the third time in the first 10 days of the season and for the fourth time in five nights, all games in different cities, so perhaps it wasn’t surprising that they faltered down the stretch.

“It was disappointing the way we started the game,” Thibodeau said. “We played a low energy game. They played great and we caught a break (because) this was the second night for them in a back to back.”

Chicago shot 2 for 21 in the second period and went more than 8 minutes without a field goal during one stretch, missing 14 straight shots.

Atlanta led 38-26 at halftime as Chicago scored just three points more than its franchise record for fewest points in a half, set on April 10, 1999, against Miami.

After winning 62 games last season, the Bulls aren’t satisfied with ugly wins this time around.

“A win is a win and it’s hard to win in this league,” Rose said. “But we know we’re 10 times better than what we showed out there. I felt bad for our fans to see us play that bad.”

NOTES: Ronnie Brewer started in place of Richard Hamilton, who sat out his second straight game with a strained left groin. Hamilton was a game-time scratch from the starting lineup. . Chicago’s C.J. Watson missed the game with a strained left elbow suffered on Sunday. Watson is listed as day-to-day by the team but was seen before the game with his arm in a sling. . Atlanta handed Miami its first loss on Monday and was trying to knock off one of last season’s Eastern Conference finalists for the second straight night. . After a day off on Wednesday, the Hawks open a stretch of three games in three nights at home, starting with a matchup against Miami on Thursday. The last game of the stretch is against the Bulls.

The Miami Heat suffered their first loss of the 2011/12 NBA season, losing 100-92 against the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 2.

The Heat came out strong against the Hawks, taking a three point lead into halftime. Both teams remained competitive for the rest of the contest, but the Heat had no answers for the Hawks in the final moments of the game. Tracy McGrady had a solid fourth quarter for the Hawks, knocking down several big threes, and sealing Miami’s fate.

“He played exceptionally well,” LeBron James said after the game. “When you’re born a scorer, you’re always a scorer. No matter what may happen to athleticism or anything like that, he’s a natural born scorer and we saw that tonight.”

Atlanta’s zone defense certainly bothered Miami, and that seems to be the Heat’s biggest weakness so far.

“We need to work through it,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters after the game. “Look, we’re going to see enough of it that we will have our breakthrough. We hope to have it sooner than later, but you can see, our minds were heavy from that point on and our minds were occupied rather than playing free.”

Once again, LeBron led Miami’s offense, putting up 28 points (game high), 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. Chris Bosh also had a decent outing for the Heat, walking away with 19 points and 6 rebounds of his own.

Dwyane Wade on the other hand struggled with his shot, but he still had an efficient game against Atlanta, finishing with 12 points, 10 assists and 3 steals.

Shane Battier had a good showing off the bench, converting on three of his four shots from long range. Battier finished with 12 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists. Udonis Haslem continued being a force to be reckoned with on the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds (game high).

Miami will get a chance for some payback when they face the Hawks again on Jan. 5. Before that though, they’ll face the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 4, for the first time in the 2011/12 NBA season.

David is a Miami Heat fan that has followed the team for 16 years. Follow him on twitter @davidkingwriter and check out his blog.

Sources:

Associated Press, “Hawks open fourth with 15-3 run to race past Heat”

Player and game information from ESPN.com

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MIAMI — Atlanta played zone defence. Tracy McGrady found his zone.

And with that, Miami’s unbeaten start came to an end.

Joe Johnson scored 21 points, McGrady hit a pair of big three-pointers in the fourth quarter and the Hawks recovered from early 10-point deficits to beat the Heat 100-92 on Monday night.

McGrady and Al Horford each scored 16 for the Hawks (4-1), who opened the final period on a 15-3 run to take control. And McGrady made perhaps the two biggest plays of the night in the final minutes, first throwing a lob to Josh Smith for a dunk, then hitting a three-pointer that gave the Hawks a 93-84 lead with 2:26 left.

“Been a long time since I had that feeling,” McGrady said. “It feels good. It feels right.”

LeBron James scored 28 points, Chris Bosh scored 19 and Dwyane Wade finished with 12 points and 10 assists for Miami (5-1). The Heat were outscored 33-21 in the fourth quarter and struggled against Atlanta’s zone defence, which not only slowed Miami down but disrupted its rhythm for long stretches. Montreal’s Joel Anthony had two points and six rebounds at centre for the Heat.

Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said not only was the zone effective on the court, it got into the Heat’s heads as well.

“We need to work through it,” Spoelstra said. “Look, we’re going to see enough of it that we will have our breakthrough. We hope to have it sooner than later. … But you can see, our minds were heavy from that point on and our minds were occupied rather than playing free.”

Jeff Teague finished with 15 points for Atlanta.

McGrady and Jannero Pargo made three-pointers midway through the fourth, giving Atlanta what was then its biggest lead at 82-74. Miami twice cut the lead to four, the second of those coming when Udonis Haslem made a free throw with 3:24 remaining.

The Heat got no closer. Off a set play called during a time-out, McGrady’s lob to Smith gave Atlanta some breathing room, and then the Florida native connected from beyond the arc on the left wing to essentially seal the win for the Hawks.

McGrady scored 13 in the fourth, his biggest final quarter since November 2008.

“He played exceptionally well,” James said of McGrady. “When you’re born a scorer, you’re always a scorer. No matter what may happen to athleticism or anything like that, he’s a natural born scorer and we saw that tonight.”

As has been the case regularly this season, Miami came out flying.

A right-handed dunk from the left-handed Bosh — he went by three Hawks on the play, sprawling to the court on the landing — less than a minute into the contest got the Heat started. Wade threw a long alley-oop pass to James for another slam and a 20-10 lead.

And when the six-foot-10 Atlanta forward Vladimir Radmanovic tried to dunk on the 6-4 Wade in the second quarter, not only did he get rejected at the rim he got a stare-down as well.

More often than not so far in this young season, once the Heat get the highlight machine going — as they did against Dallas in the season opener and Charlotte on Sunday night — they’ve simply run away from opponents.

Not in this game. Atlanta had plenty of answers.

“The zone changed the rhythm of the game,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said.

Down by 10 midway through the second quarter, Atlanta made a run to turn everything around. A 17-5 run not only erased the deficit, but gave the Hawks their first lead at 44-42 when Horford scored off a lob from Smith.

Miami scored the next eight points, then got unlucky on the final play of the half. Wade swatted a ball away from the baseline, but it sailed directly to a wide-open Johnson, who swished a 3-pointer as the half expired to cut Miami’s edge to 50-47 at the break.

Johnson was 4 for 4 in the second quarter, and the Hawks’ starters shot a combined 11 for 14 in the second 12 minutes.

Neither team led by more than four points in the third, and that was the cushion — 71-67 — that Miami carried into the fourth. Atlanta led by three after another jumper by Johnson with 4:39 left, but the Hawks missed seven of their final eight shots of the quarter, six of those from the perimeter. And when Shane Battier made a 3-pointer, just his third field goal of the season, with 26 seconds left in the period, the Heat were back on top.

Then Atlanta simply took off in the fourth, denying Miami any shot at the first 6-0 start in franchise history. And when McGrady threw that lob to Smith, he pointed to the Hawks’ bench in celebration, sensing the win was coming.

“Great execution,” McGrady said. “That’s what you have to do when you’re playing great teams.”

NOTES: Actor Adrien Brody and rapper Lil Wayne sat next to each other courtside. … The teams play again Thursday in Atlanta, a game that will mark Miami’s fourth in five nights. … Wade had eight assists by halftime, already tying a season high. … Monday’s game marked just the third time McGrady played at Miami since November 2008. … The Heat were without reserve rookie C Mickell Gladness (left foot infection). He is day-to-day. … Hawks vice-president Dominique Wilkins said G Kirk Hinrich (shoulder surgery) is still expected to miss another month.

Tracy McGrady, who played for the Detroit Pistons last season, has agreed to a 1-year, veteran-minimum deal with the Atlanta Hawks, a source close to the situation told

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.

McGrady, a 6-foot-8 shooting guard, averaged 8.0 points and 23.4 minutes per game for the Pistons, appearing in 72 games and starting 39.

McGrady, now a 15-year-veteran, has been hampered by injuries over the past few seasons.

But he told the Free Press last week. “I am back, I have my athleticism, my knee is a lot stronger, my body is in shape. I have no restrictions. Everything will fall into place.”

McGrady is three years removed from microfracture surgery on his left knee.

Before his health issues, McGrady, 32, was a star with spectacular dunks as a normal part of his game. He showed flashes of that form last season, bringing occasional stability to the lineup.