Jeff Teague almost stole one.
The Hawks guard jumped an inbounds pass with the Clippers leading by two points but a Paul Millsap drive failed at the buzzer. The Clippers escaped with an 85-83 victory Wednesday night at Philips Arena.
The Hawks (27-20) suffered an early fourth-quarter scoring drought to fall behind by five points. The Hawks rallied and took an 82-81 lead on a Kyle Korver 3-pointer with 24.6 seconds left. However, the Clippers got key points from DeAndre Jordan and Jamal Crawford down the stretch. Millsap also missed in close with 8.8 seconds left before the Hawks had to foul Crawford.
The Clippers (30-16) took advantage of 23 Hawks turnovers.
Here are the key players and five observations on the game:
Three key players
Jamal Crawford: The reserve Clippers guard had 21 points on 9 of 16 shooting. His two free throws with 7.8 seconds left sealed the game.
DeAndre Jordan: The Clippers center dunked with 15.2 seconds left, on a Chris Paul assist, for the winning points. He finished with 13 points and 19 rebounds.
Jeff Teague: The Hawks point guard finished with 16 points on 7 of 10 shooting, including seven in the fourth quarter.
Five observations
1. Teague time
The Hawks fell behind by five points, 74-69, after scoring just three points in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter. Teague scored seven of the Hawks’ next eight points to make it a two-point game, 79-77, with 2:30 left. The Hawks tied the game on the ensuing possession with a Kent Bazemore basket. It set up the late-game dramatics.
2. Hack-a-Jordan
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer employed the hack-a-strategy with Jordan. Budenholzer tried to use it near the end of the second quarter but Korver couldn’t hear over the loud crowd (he had just hit a 3-pointer). The Clippers got a timeout and took Jordan out of the game. Budenholzer intended to foul Jordan again late in the third quarter and the Clippers immediately subbed Cole Aldrich. The Hawks fouled Jordan on an inbounds play with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. Jordan ended up 7 of 12 from the free-throw line for the game, including four straight makes late.
3. Korver returning to form
Korver has struggled from 3-point range this season. He entered Wednesday’s game shooting .371 from long-range, far below last season. However, over the past 11 games he is shooting .480 (24 of 51).
4. Hawks use first-half runs
The Hawks took leads after the first and second quarters with solid runs. They closed the first quarter on a 12-2 run to take a 23-17 lead. Bazemore and Dennis Schroder hit back-to-back 3-pointers. The Hawks lost their advantage in the second quarter but used a 7-1 run to lead 45-43 at the intermission. Korver hit a 3-pointer for the final points.
5. Clippers answer
The Hawks led by as many as nine points, 63-54, midway through the third quarter. It was the Clippers who answered with a late run of their own. They closed the third with a 10-3 run to trail just 66-64 headed into the final quarter. The Hawks had nine third-quarter turnovers.
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