The Atlanta Hawks beat the Charlotte Hornets 115-105 at State Farm Arena on Saturday, ending the opponents' five-game win streak while achieving the fourth straight win of their own.

Clint Capela showed dominance for the Hawks in the paint by dropping 20 points, 15 rebounds and two blocks. He made 10 of 11 field goal (FG) attempts and nine of them happened under the rim. He also grabbed six offensive rebounds.

The Hawks had a total of six players reach double-digit points, four from the starting lineup and two off the bench. Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish and Danilo Gallinari all shot (over) 50 percent from downtown and drained nine triples combined. Trae Young did not share their hot hands, but delivered nine assists.

"I think the improvement that we've made is just to play faster," Young said after the game. "The more possessions you have, the more shots you get up, with the guys we have, it's good."

Considering that the Hornets have the third-fastest pace (101.6) of the league this season, the Hawks (97.9, eighteenth in the NBA this season) invested a lot of extra efforts trying to match the opponents in speed.

However, the Hawks' victory was built not only on their hard-working performance, but also on the reckless choices of tactics by the Hornets in Saturday's game.

For example, the Hornets chose to switch defensively when the Hawks launched offense via screen plays. It's an understandable decision because the Hornets have enough swingmen to do so without leaving too many mismatches. However, their switch defense often came with aggressive double-teaming, many of which was conducted by the team's only full-sized big man Mason Plumlee.

One lethal consequence of such defense was leaving a huge vacancy in the paint for Capela and John Collins, both of whom are athletic finishers, to exploit. Moreover, even when both sides sent small-ball squad to the floor, the Hornets' defensive choices were still costly because they lacked effective coordination. That meant after the ball was moved over three times, some of the Hornets' defenders would easily lose their targets, allowing open 3-pointers by the Hawks.

Miles Bridges scored 35 points and 10 rebounds while LaMelo Ball had a triple-double of 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists for the Hornets. But it's hardly enough to make up for the easy points they allowed the Hawks with the incorrect defensive decisions.

Wizards keep Heat from leading the Eastern Conference

The Washington Wizards edged the Miami Heat 103-100 at Capital One Arena on Saturday. The result switched their positions in the Eastern Conference as the Wizards rose to the second place and the Heat fell to fourth.

This win did not come easy for the Wizards as they once trailed by 16 points at home. Bradley Beal was struggling behind the arc (1-7), but he managed to keep the game close (75-71) by putting down 21 points in the first three quarters.

In response, the Heat stopped at nothing trying to trap him in Q4 and Beal only shot twice in this quarter and missed both.

Fortunately for him and the Wizards, Spencer Dinwiddie and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope became the savior of the team in Q4. The two were combined at 7-7 in FGs and 5-5 in triples to put down 20 points. Meanwhile, Kyle Kuzma, who averaged only 54.1 percent at the free throw line this season, managed to make all four free throws in the last moments, making sure that the Wizards pocket a win at home after two consecutive losses.

"That's in our DNA," Caldwell-Pope said. "We just fight."

The Heat had the chance to tie the score in the last possession but Jimmy Butler missed that desperate three. However, the game might not have to be so intensive for the Heat if coach Erik Spoelstra had not kept Tyler Herro, who was 6-12 in FGs and 3-6 in triples, on the bench during the last five minutes until the last moments.

"This league is very humbling," Butler said after the game. "It's fragile, and just as soon as you think you're good and you're high on yourself, you get hit like this."

Other games on Saturday (away teams come first):

Houston Rockets 99-106 New York Knicks

New Orleans Pelicans 94-111 Indiana Pacers

Orlando Magic 108-111 Milwaukee Bucks

Memphis Grizzlies 95-138 Minnesota Timberwolves

Philadelphia 76ers 111-118 Portland Trail Blazers

Utah Jazz 123-105 Sacramento Kings