The Hawks were left shaking their heads. That will happen after a non-call left them on the losing end of a tough-luck defeat.
Mike Scott appeared to be fouled by Joakim Noah on a potential game-tying 3-point attempt with eight seconds left. The play, which was officially ruled a turnover, helped the Bulls escape with a 107-103 win over the Hawks Tuesday night at Philips Arena.
“I thought I was (fouled),” Scott said afterward. “Joakim Noah even said he fouled me. You can’t do anything about it now. That’s all I’ve got to say about it. You can’t do anything about it now.”
The play was the culmination of several key moments that went against the Hawks as a fourth-quarter rally fell short.
“Do I think he was fouled?” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “I just looked at it and yes I do.”
The Hawks (26-30, 17-11 home) have lost nine of 10 games. The dropped their fifth straight to the Bulls, including all three games this season.
The Bulls were also the beneficiary of another controversial foul call. The Hawks took a 100-99 lead on a fast-break layup by DeMarre Carroll, on an assist from Jeff Teague, with 1:40 remaining. After a Mike Dunleavy layup, Carroll connected on a 3-pointer, late in the shot clock, with 1:06 left for a 103-101 Hawks lead.
On the ensuing possession, Carroll was called for a foul on Kirk Hinrich on a 3-point attempt with a second left on the shot clock. With 43.2 seconds left, the former Hawk made all three freebies for a 104-103 lead that would be the game-winners. It appeared Hinrich jumped to the side to force contact with Carroll.
“It’s just a tough call,” Carroll said. “I tried to run past the guy. It’s just a tough call. The ref made a call. You have to live with it.”
Scott then missed a 3-pointer but Carroll slapped the rebound back out and Scott made a long-range shot only to have it not could as Budenholzer called a frantic timeout with 28.4 seconds left.
Noah stripped Teague in the lane and the Bulls re-gained possession with 20.1 seconds left. After a steal by Kyle Korver on the inbounds pass, Teague drove into the paint but stepped out of bounds. Hinrich was fouled made two free throws with 11 seconds left to set up the Hawks’ final attempt.
“I’ve got to make better plays,” Teague said. “Those two turnovers are really going to frustrate me tonight. We had opportunities. We drew up good plays. We just didn’t execute. It’s all on my part.”
Hinrich made another free throw for the final margin.
Teague led the Hawks with a game-high 26 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter. Shelvin Mack added 17 points. Korver (16 points), Carroll (13), Scott (12) and Lou Williams (12) were the other double-digit scorers. Korver extended his NBA-record streak to 125 games with a 3-pointer.
The Hawks had not scored more than 85 points against the Bulls in the first two games this season with an average margin of defeat of 11 points.
The Bulls (30-26, 14-16 road) have won six of the past seven games. Dunleavy had 22 points. Noah had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Carlos Boozer had 17 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bulls took an 80-75 lead into the final quarter on the strength of a D.J. Augustin half-court shot at the buzzer.
The Hawks held a 14-point lead in the first quarter but lost it midway through the second. The Bulls started the second quarter on a 19-7 run to take the lead with just over six minutes left in the first half. The Bulls took a 54-51 advantage into intermission, outscoring the Hawks 34-21 in the second, even as Teague hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
The Hawks started fast as Korver hit three straight 3-pointers to begin the game. An 11-2 first-quarter run gave the Hawks a 26-12 edge over the Bulls, who missed 10 of their first 13 shots.
“When you lose, you always would do a couple things differently but I thought we got some good looks at the basket,” Korver said. “Jeff’s foot barely goes out of bounds. A shot goes in and out. Whatever it was, we just didn’t close it out.”
The Hawks play at the Celtics Wednesday.
