Coming back from a 19-point deficit, the Hawks (16-20) tripped up the Magic (13-23) in the fourth quarter of their 115-112 win in Orlando Wednesday night.
This was the Hawks’ final game before the All-Star break. They’ll have a week off before facing the Raptors March 11 in Tampa, Fla.
Below are some takeaways from the win:
1. Flipping their fourth-quarter struggles upside-down, the Hawks surged late, making nine 3-pointers in the final period to nab a comeback win. They trailed by as much as 19 and entered the fourth down 12, but took the lead, 111-110, with 1:09 left, after back-to-back 3-pointers by Trae Young and Tony Snell. The Magic responded with a layup by Nikola Vucevic, but Young drew a foul and made both free throws to keep the Hawks ahead.
The Hawks got a key stop on the following possession. Against a shorthanded Orlando team, this was a winnable game that the Hawks needed to put away.
The last two games, they’ve closed out games by following a simple formula, per interim head coach Nate McMillan: get stops, knock down open looks, rebound the ball. “... This is what they did tonight, and they did it last night, and you will give yourself a chance to win games,” McMillan said. “In a lot of those games that we were losing in the fourth quarter, we weren’t doing those things.”
2. Orlando has certainly been the NBA team most devastated by injuries this season, though the Hawks are up there. The Magic were missing Evan Fournier (left groin strain), Markelle Fultz (torn ACL left knee), Aaron Gordon (left ankle sprain), Jonathan Isaac (left knee injury recovery), Cole Anthony (right rib fracture) and James Ennis III (sore left calf) Wednesday.
The Hawks have two long-term injured players in De’Andre Hunter and Kris Dunn, having gotten Bogdan Bogdanovic back, but were missing Clint Capela, out with right foot pain, which left them undersized when facing All-Star center Vucevic.
Vucevic led the Magic with 29 points and nine rebounds, though he only had four points in the fourth quarter.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
3. Offensively, Young and Danilo Gallinari led the way. Young had a quiet first half but put up 20 points in the second half, finishing with a game-high 32 points to go with eight assists. Gallinari, who has struggled defensively and in finding consistency this season, started at center with Capela out and finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists. McMillan commended Gallinari’s defense on Vucevic.
4. Winning on the second night of a back-to-back, as Gallinari pointed out, is often mental. The Hawks started the season 0-5 in that scenario, but have won two in a row, dating back to the win vs. Boston Feb. 24. They have eight back-to-backs in the second half.
5. The upcoming All-Star break is much needed for the Hawks, given injuries, this season’s compressed schedule and the recent coaching change, and these last two wins allow them to go into the off-week on a bright note.
They finish the second half sitting at No. 11 in the Eastern Conference standings, but the middle of the pack is so crowded, they’re actually not in a bad position moving into the second half.
“It feels good,” Young said. “I think is my first win going into the All-Star break. For us, that’s good momentum. I know we were down early and we were talking and just wanted to finish out strong, don’t start the break too early. For us, you can tell in that second half how much it really meant to us to win that game.”
Stat of the game
46.7% (what the Hawks shot from 3-point range, with six players making multiple 3′s: Snell 3-for-4, John Collins 3-6, Gallinari 5-10, Kevin Huerter 3-7, Young 4-7, Solomon Hill 2-5)
Star of the game
Young (had a game-high 32 points and 20 in the second half, helping lead the Hawks’ comeback efforts)
Quotable
“A hell of a job by the entire group tonight.” (McMillan on the Hawks’ comeback win)
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