Aiming to finish their final few games before the All-Star break strong, the Hawks aren’t having much luck.
After a disastrous third quarter, the Hawks lost to the Celtics 105-95 Sunday in Boston, falling to 26-30 overall. With the Hawks hoping to finish in the Eastern Conference’s top six spots to avoid the play-in tournament, they have now lost four of their last five games, and that scenario is looking less likely.
With the Hawks leading by as much as 15 in the first half and up 10 at halftime, the Celtics bounced back from a rough shooting start to go on a 12-2 run to start the third quarter, tying the score at 57. Jayson Tatum had 16 points in the third, helping Boston outscore Atlanta 42-23 to take a nine-point lead heading into the fourth.
Once Tatum got going, the Hawks couldn’t make up enough ground in the fourth despite an excellent performance from Bogdan Bogdanovic, who finished with a season-high 26 points, plus six rebounds and two assists. The Hawks were held to 40 points in the second half, with 25 of Tatum’s 38 points coming after the break, helping the Celtics to their eighth consecutive win. He added 10 rebounds for a double-double.
“It was just the third quarter. I thought we got distracted by the officiating and just lost focus and lost our rhythm and was not able to get that back in the second half,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said.
The Celtics went 22-for-27 (81.5%) from the free-throw line, with the Hawks going 15-for-15.
Two layups and a free throw by Trae Young, plus a layup by De’Andre Hunter made it a six-point game, 97-91, with 3:52 to play, but the Hawks couldn’t come all the way back from that messy third quarter. Young led the Hawks with 30 points and 10 assists.
The Hawks played without John Collins, who sustained a right foot strain in Friday’s loss to the Spurs and is out for the last few games heading into the All-Star break. Danilo Gallinari (five points) started in his place, and the Hawks relied more heavily on Hunter.
Hunter sat for much of the third quarter after picking up his fourth foul early in the second half, which seemed to loosen up things for Tatum. Hunter finished with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Clint Capela had a team-high 17 rebounds, plus eight points. Boston had 50 points in the paint compared with Atlanta’s 36.
Next up, the Hawks will host the Cavaliers on Tuesday. Their final game before the All-Star break is Wednesday in Orlando.
