Heat go down hard 106-91
From AP wire reports
Dwyane Wade banged his head on the court. Al Horford hobbled to the locker room. Jamaal Magloire doled out a shove, and Josh Smith pushed back.
On a night of hard fouls, plenty of banging and staredowns galore, the Atlanta Hawks moved closer to reaching the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in a decade, beating Miami 106-91 Wednesday to take a 3-2 lead in the series.
Joe Johnson had his best game of the postseason with 25 points, and the Hawks took control during a decisive second quarter that pushed them to a 63-40 halftime lead. Flip Murray added 23 points.
Wade had 29 points, but banged his head on the court in the first half and didn’t really get going until the game was already decided.
Suspended: Dwight Howard’s elbow has given the Orlando Magic’s playoff hopes a major hit.
Howard was suspended for Game 6 of the Magic’s playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers for his elbow on Sixers center Samuel Dalembert Tuesday.
The two got tangled up going for a rebound in the first quarter in Game 5.
The Magic lead the Sixers 3-2 in the best-of-seven series.