Hawks guard Trae Young shoots over Miami’s Bam Adebayo during Game 3 of their first-round playoff series Friday in Atlanta. Brett Davis/Associated Press
ATLANTA — Trae Young hit a floater in the lane with 4.4 seconds left and the Atlanta Hawks overcame a 16-point deficit in the second half to beat top-seeded Miami 111-110 on Friday night, cutting the Heat’s lead to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference first-round series.
Jimmy Butler missed a jumper with 12.6 second left that could’ve given the Heat a three-point cushion. He missed again on an off-balance 3 at the buzzer with De’Andre Hunter in his face to give the Hawks a burst of hope in the best-of-seven series.
Game 4 is Sunday night in Atlanta.
P.J. Tucker led a 21-0 run in the third quarter that pushed the Heat to an 84-68 lead and seemingly on cruise control to a 3-0 series lead. But Young and the Hawks would not let them get away.
Young finished with 24 points despite another stout defensive effort by the Heat. Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18, Hunter 17 and three others scored in double figures to take some of the pressure off the star guard.
Coming off a 45-point effort in Game 3, Butler was held to 20. Tyler Herro led the Heat with 24 points, and Max Strus also had 20.
BUCKS 111, BULLS 81: Grayson Allen made five 3-pointers and scored 22 points and visiting Milwaukee dominated Chicago to take a 2-1 lead in the first-round playoff series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo added 18 points, Bobby Portis had 18 points and 16 rebounds and the defending champion Bucks made it look easy coming off two shaky performances at home.
Milwaukee quieted a raucous crowd watching Chicago’s first playoff game at the United Center in five years almost as soon as it started. The Bucks led by 24 in the second quarter and remained in control the rest of the way.
Nikola Vucevic led Chicago with 19 points.
NOTES
BUCKS: Milwaukee forward Khris Middleton hopes two weeks is all he needs to recover from his sprained left knee and get back to helping his team repeat as NBA champion.
The three-time All-Star is eyeing a return in the Eastern Conference semifinals, assuming the Bucks get past the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs. Milwaukee took a 2-1 series lead with a 111-81 win Friday night in Chicago.
“They say two weeks,” Middleton said at the morning shootaround. “Hopefully, I’ll be ready or close to getting back on the court around then.”
Middleton headed to the locker room with 6:49 remaining in Game 2 on Wednesday. His left leg gave out when he tried to plant on a spin move. The Bulls went on to win 114-110 behind DeMar DeRozan’s 41 points.
Coach Mike Budenholzer said after the game that Middleton sprained the medial collateral ligament. An MRI on Thursday confirmed it. The team said Middleton would receive daily treatment, and there would be an update on his status in about two weeks.
That means he likely will miss the remainder of the first-round series, which would end May 1 if it goes the full seven games.
“We’ve got a lot of good players,” Budenholzer said. “The roster – we’ve talked about the depth of it, the quality of it. That’s why you do it. The front office put together a great team.”
HORNETS: Charlotte fired coach James Borrego after blowout losses in back-to-back seasons in the play-in tournament.
Hornets president of basketball operations and general manager Mitch Kupchak made the announcement on Friday.
“I want to thank JB for his hard work and commitment during these past four seasons,” Kupchak said in a release by the team. “Beyond his work as a coach, he is a tremendous person. I wish him and his family the best in the future. These decisions are always difficult.”
Kupchak said the team will begin its search for a new head coach immediately.
The 44-year-old Borrego was 138-163 in four seasons with the Hornets and had received a multi-year contract extension last August. Charlotte finished 43-39 this season, but was embarrassed in the play-in game for the second straight year.
The Hornets have not made the playoffs since the 2015-16 season and have not won a playoff series since the 2001-02 season.
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