Shorthanded Hawks’ tank runs empty as they fall to Rockets
Fresh off their upset over the Celtics, the Hawks returned home to host the Rockets. Down three of their usual starters and with heavy legs, the Hawks fell to the Rockets 104-86 on Thursday.
“We’ve got to score, and it’s reflected in how many times we got our shot blocked and how many 3s we got,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “We talked a lot about getting the lane and having your eyes out, and their cross matching was an issue for us. They were inside with a big most of the game. It’s hard for us to recognize that in some pick-and-roll situations.”
Quick stats: CJ McCollum led the Hawks in scoring with 23 points off the bench. Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 20 points, while Corey Kispert had 17.
Rockets forward Kevin Durant had 31 points.
Turning point
The Hawks started the night well enough, despite missing Jalen Johnson (left calf tightness) and Onyeka Okongwu (dental fracture). They ended the first half down one, 43-42, but the game quickly devolved in the second half.
The Rockets looked fresher, despite also playing a game the night before, beating the Hawks to long rebounds and generating plenty of second-chance opportunities.
Highlight play
On a night where the Hawks just didn’t seem to have any juice, new Hawks center Christian Koloko gave the Hawks a breakaway dunk in the fourth quarter.
Koloko and Rockets center Alperen Sengun had battled each other all night. Some of those frustrations bubbled over into some ticky-tack fouls for Koloko.
But when Koloko saw a moment to take a loose ball the other way, he seized it.
What they said
“Not having Jalen and O is substantial. Their ability to create advantages is something that we rely on defensively. That said, when we did get into the paint, we were trying to challenge. I don’t know how many blocked shots they had. It was a lot, and then we were taking the ball (out of the net). It was their tempo and partly because the offensive rebounding, makes it more challenging for us.” -- Snyder on how tough it was to defend without Johnson and Okongwu.
“When he’s at the nail at the foul line, it’s very difficult to double-team him. A lot of times, they’ll shoot before the double comes. When you do commit two players to him, that’s when you get hurt on the glass.” -- Snyder said on the challenge of guarding Kevin Durant.
“Houston does a great job of putting their hands on you and slowing you down. There were periods of time during the game where you kind of had that flow going and stuff. But missing a guy like JJ and O, it takes a while to get used to that and we just couldn’t get out of the mud today.” -- Kispert on the Hawks trying to establish their offense without Johnson and Okongwu.
Up next
The Hawks head to Indianapolis on Saturday, where they face the Pacers.
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