Yes, the Hawks won.
But they sure made it interesting.
After allowing nine first-quarter points and leading by as many as 24, the Hawks did lead wire-to-wire but had to hold off the Hornets for an 87-76 victory Sunday afternoon at Philips Arena.
The Hornets closed to within two points, 70-68, with 7:22 remaining before the Hawks answered with a 15-4 run to secure a win they desperately needed.
“In my eyes, this was another must (win),” Al Horford said. “If you think about it, Charlotte is right behind us. They have been playing well. They are in our division. Winning the series against them was important. Coach (Mike Budenholzer) didn’t say any of this but in my mind, this was a big game for us.”
The Hawks (33-27) won their second straight to close a five-game homestand at 2-3. They took the season series against the Hornets 3-1 for a tie-breaker that could be important late in the season. Next up for the Hawks is a five-game road trip that begins at the Warriors on Tuesday.
The Hornets (30-28) suffered only their second loss in the past eight games.
Here are the key players and five observations on the game:
Three key players
Al Horford: The Hawks center finished with a double-double of 13 points and 16 rebounds.
Kent Bazemore: The Hawks forward scored a team-high 14 points and went 2-of-2 from 3-point range.
Tim Hardaway: The Hawks backup guard had his best all-around game as a Hawk with 11 points and a plus-20 rating.
Five observations
1. Nine first-quarter points
The Hornets could not have started worse. Well, maybe just a little. They went 2-of-21 (.095) shooting for the quarter, making just one of their first 19 shots. Four of their points came from the free-throw line. The nine points were both a season-low allowed by the Hawks opponent in any quarter and a Hornets season-low for points in any quarter.
2. Going with the bench late
Budenholzer turned to his bench with the game on the line. Mike Scott and Hardaway spelled Paul Millsap and Kyle Korver late in the game. Scott came in with 7:05 left and played the rest of the way. Hardaway played 7:49 while Korver played just 2:56 of the final quarter.
“It was just one of those gut-feel things,” Budenholzer said. “… That’s why it’s a good team win. You have to have your bench step up.”
3. Free-throw disparity
The Hornets took 23 free-throw attempts. The Hawks took just five. Dennis Schroder had three of the attempts. The Hawks didn’t get their final two tries until Scott went to the line with 3:07 left to play. No Hawks starter attempt a free throw.
4. Only a little better in the second
The Hawks led 46-32 after the first half as the Hornets shot a little better. They were 7-of-20 from the field in the second quarter. The Hawks led by as many as 24 points in the second quarter, 36-12, with 8:06 remaining. The 76 points allowed were the fewest by the Hawks this season.
5. Horford milestone
Horford has been on the verge of his 200th career double-double for some time. He got it Sunday. He got off to fast start with eight first-quarter rebounds. He scored five fourth-quarter points to get the milestone with a 3-pointer pushing him over double-digits.
