What they said after the Hawks’ 114-109 loss to the Lakers Tuesday night at Philips Arena:
Coach Mike Budenholzer
Opening statement: "We dug ourselves too big a hole tonight, giving up 67 points in the first half and playing from behind the entire game is difficult. We were better in the second half but you can't put yourself in that position. We need to improve defensively – 114 points, 54 percent (Lakers' shooting percentage) you are not going to win very many games that way."
On first-half issues: "They were comfortable. The got a lot of buckets. I think (Carlos) Boozer played well tonight. He made some shots. Jeremy Lin got going. Halfway through the (first) quarter, from the four- or five-minute mark, Kobe Bryant made a few shots. They had a lot of guys contributing, a lot of guys playing well. I don't think we are where we need to be defensively."
On Pero Antic potential game-tying shot: "It is something where you have multiple options, multiple opportunities. I think Pero was wide open. I'll take that kind of look down three so I think the execution, reads and decisions were good."
On foul call on Kyle Korver with 44 seconds left: "I'm going to pass. I haven't seen the replay. Officials are in tough spots. You never want a player to miss a shot. You never want those guys to miss. I have no idea. I'm biased. I don't think we ever foul. I'm sure we do. I haven't seen it. It's a tough call. We'll look at it."
On scoring first 13 points of second half to get back into game: "They guys collectively figured out some things that needed to happen on the court. I give our players credit for the way they came out in the second half and close that gap with a 13-0 run to cut it to two. It's really the players. I think we've got a resilient group. We've got a group that can bounce back and fight and that was indicative of the way they started the quarter."
Kyle Korver
On foul call with 44 seconds left: "I can't really talk about it."
On losing game in first quarter (outscored 31-20): "We've done this a couple of times. We have to start the game better. We have to have more of a sense of urgency to start the game and not just finish the game."
Pero Antic
On potential game-tying shot: "The system was not for me to shoot. It was for Jeff (Teague). They went double team so I had an open look. And I missed basically an easy shot.
On frustration over miss: "Usually I make the shots. I will keep shooting until I make them."
On early deficit: "We fight back. We had chance. I miss it. We are going to learn from this and get ready for the next game.
Paul Millsap
On breakdowns: "Too many to list. We just didn't have it clicking on the defensive end at all tonight, lot of layups, lot of dunks. Give them credit. They hit a lot of tough shots.
On second half: "We just came out more aggressive, more focused, paid attention more to the (scouting report), went out and got some steals.
On second-half adjustments: "There were none. We just came out and played harder. Simple as that."
On frustration level: "From one to 10, 10 being the highest, a 10. It's frustrating, especially coming off the loss in Cleveland you think that we'd come out with a little more energy, especially on the defensive end. But it wasn't the case. We dug ourselves a hole and at the end of the day we paid for it."
On his early start offensively: "Just attack mode. Attack the basket. I was able to get in a rhythm early and hit a few shots."
Al Horford
On defensive breakdowns: "I think it was more of an energy standpoint in the first half. We weren't doing things hard enough. In the second half we had much more of a sense of urgency. I don't care what team it is, it's proven today, if you don't bring the energy and the intensity for the whole game, you are probably going to lose. Even though we had a chance to win here, it's not going to cut it playing just one good half of basketball."
On frustration level for poor start after losing to Cleveland: "Honestly, I thought we were going to be fine. I thought we had a good practice. The guys were focused. We have to get back to work, look at the film. We have some work to do. We are not where we need to be yet."
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