MIAMI -- Wayne Ellington was the star of the first half, and Josh Richardson took over in the fourth quarter.

Ellington scored 19 of his 20 points in the second quarter and Richardson had eight of his game-high 21 points in the fourth.

Coach Erik Spoelstra praised both players after his Miami Heat defeated the Atlanta Hawks 104-93 on Monday night at American Airlines Arena.

"I absolutely love watching Wayne work at his craft," Spoelstra said after Ellington made 6 of 7 3-pointers in the second quarter. "He hasn't changed one bit in terms of how he works to develop that shot.

"But the most important thing is he creates space. You have to guard him out to 23, 24 feet, and it adds to the diversity of our offense."

Ellington tied Brian Shaw for a franchise record. In April 1993, Shaw also made six 3-pointers in a quarter and had 10 for the game.

"He makes some unbelievable shots," Heat forward Justise Winslow said of Ellington. "When he makes one, we're going to go out of our way to keep finding him."

Spoelstra said it's a percentages game with Ellington.

"If he goes 1 for 7, that means he's going to have a half where he is 6 for 7," Spoelstra said. "He's a 40-plus-percent 3-point shooter. And now that he's in world-class shape, he's a 45-, 50-percent 3-point shooter."

Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said Ellington was tough to stop.

"He's very gifted coming off the pin-downs," Budenholzer said. "Our guys were doing everything they could to stay with him. He's got a little pump-fake game so maybe he shook free on a couple."

Miami (2-1) has won two straight games, and Atlanta (1-3) has lost three in a row. But despite having a 21-point first-half lead, the Heat coughed it up as the Hawks went on a 29-9 run.

The Hawks tied the score 77-77 with 10:56 remaining in the fourth quarter. But Atlanta never took the lead in the fourth quarter as Richardson, a third-year wing, took over.

It was just Richardson's fourth career game of 20 or more points, but he also provided four rebounds, two blocks, two steals and two steals.

In the fourth quarter, he made two layups, two free throws and one mid-range jumper.

"What didn't J-Rich do tonight?" Spoelstra said in admiration.

Spoelstra gave Richardson a major compliment when he compared him to former Heat guard Dwyane Wade.

"Those were the types of plays at the rim we had a former two-guard here make," Spoelstra said. "Those kinds of blocks -- there aren't many two-guards in the league who can make those plays and then guard one through four, stretch the floor for us and then when needed in the fourth quarter be able to attack."

Miami also got 19 points and six assists from Goran Dragic and a double-double off the bench from Kelly Olynyk (10 points, 10 rebounds).

Atlanta was led by Kent Bazemore and Taurean Prince, who had 20 points each. John Collins added 14 points and 11 rebounds.

"The biggest thing we take away from tonight is we stayed steady," Bazemore said of the Hawks' rally that fell short. "We kept plugging away and gave ourselves a chance.

"We fought hard. If we keep our effort consistent, once our offense starts rolling ... things will look up."

Budenholzer was pleased his Hawks held Miami to 1 of 14 on 3-pointers in the second half.

"It takes a lot of individual pride," he said of Atlanta's defensive effort. "Miami does a lot of driving and kicking. It takes all five guys to guard Miami. All five guys have to scramble and help each other

"I wish we had made a couple more stops, but it wasn't due to a lack of effort."

NOTES: Hawks PG Dennis Schroder, who injured his left ankle on Sunday, sat out. Malcolm Delaney, a second-year pro, replaced Schroder, making just his third career start. Delaney scored 10 points. ... Atlanta was also without C Miles Plumlee (right quad), PF Ersan Ilyasova (left knee) and SF DeAndre Bembry (right wrist). ... Heat C Hassan Whiteside (bruised knee) missed his second consecutive game. ... Miami sent C A.J. Hammons to their G League affiliate in Sioux Falls. ... The Heat was the more rested team, having last played at home on Saturday night. Atlanta played at the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday afternoon before traveling to Miami. ... Atlanta's first five games this year are on the road while Phillips Arena goes through a $190 million renovation. ... Miami named F James Johnson, PG Goran Dragic and F Udonis Haslem team captains. It's the first time in the pro careers of Dragic and Johnson that they have been named captain.