Hawks lose to Sixers, face Heat in play-in

In a two-minute span, the Hawks went 1-of-3 from from the floor, while allowing the Sixers to crash the glass and get second-chance opportunities. On top of that, Hawks center Clint Capela missed a pair of free throws that left the door open for the Sixers’ Jaden Springer to tie the game at 117 with 47.5 seconds left.

Despite a clutch floater from Trae Young, a putback dunk from Springer tied the game at 119 once again. The Hawks committed a turnover on a shot-clock violation and the Sixers’ heave at the buzzer fell short, sending the game into overtime.

The Hawks continued to struggle in overtime too and were burned by Georges Niang, who knocked down a pair of 3s that sealed the game.

“They played really hard. They didn’t have a good win last night,” Young said. “They lost. They came in firing, playing very well, hit some shots, tough shots. Jaden hit some tough shots and Montrezl (Harrell) gave them a spark off the bench. And they just hit a few more shots that we did tonight.”

2. For the second straight night, Young doled out over 15 assists with the guard dishing out a career-high 20. The Hawks guard spread the ball around the floor throughout the game and his assists helped account for 46 of the team’s points.

But the Hawks opted for Young to have the last shot instead, with the guard later noting that the team avoided a timeout to prevent the Sixers from putting other defenders on the floor. As the clock wound down, Young initially called for a screen from Capela but saw the Sixers try to trap. He waved Capela off but it was too late.

“They still came and I think a third guy came and it was already two, three seconds left on the clock,” Young said. “I knew I had to get a quick shot up. I couldn’t really pass it so the next guy could get a shot. So I just tried to get a quick shot.”

3. Since the All-Star break, the Hawks have topped the league in second-chance points, averaging 17.1 per game.

But the Hawks had just four offensive rebounds on Friday, while the Sixers grabbed 13 for 22 second-chance points. The Sixers’ effort on the offensive glass, particularly in the second half, opened up the game for them. The Sixers had nine second-chance points in the fourth quarter, which allowed them to outscore the Hawks 33-29 and push the game into overtime.

4. With the Sixers down several of their regular starters, a number of their rotational pieces stepped up. Along with Niang, who scored a career-high 24 points and hit the game-winning 3, the Sixers had big contributions from Springer (19 points), Jalen McDaniels (24 points) and several others.

Springer, who averaged 1.6 points in the NBA, but 19 points in the G League, dropped 19 points. The sophomore guard started in the place of James Harden and gave the Hawks plenty of trouble from all over the floor before he fouled out.

5. The Hawks have clinched the eighth seed for the play-in tournament despite their loss to the Sixers. Both the Heat and the Raptors lost their own games and will be locked into the seventh and ninth seeds respectively.

The Hawks will head to Miami where they will face the Heat in the play-in. If the Hawks win, they head to the playoffs as the seventh seed and will face the Celtics.

If they lose, they face the winner of the game between the Raptors and Bulls. A win secures the eighth seed and a matchup against the Bucks. A loss eliminates them.

Stat to know

1 -- Trae Young is the first player in franchise history to tally at least 25 points and 20 assists in a game.

Quotable

“I think we’re a group that wants to continue to play the right way. And we need to make sure we do what we need to do as far as some guys being rested and other guys being sharp, and more than anything, our mentality, we need to not let tonight’s game be some dramatic statement about where we are.” -- Hawks coach Quin Snyder on preparing for the play-in tournament.

Up next

The Hawks wrap up their regular season on the road against the Celtics on Sunday.