Hawks 97, Nuggets 92
A much-needed victory for the Hawks was well in their grasp. It almost slipped through their fingers.
The Hawks lost a 21-point second-half lead but held off the Nuggets for a 97-92 victory Saturday night at Philips Arena.
Jeff Teague made a free throw with 8.4 seconds left to give the Hawks a three-point lead, 95-92. He missed the second attempt but Pero Antic tapped the rebound out. Kyle Korver than sank two free throws with 4.4 seconds remaining for the final margin.
Teague scored, late in the shot clock, with 1:51 left to give the Hawks a 91-89. The Hawks had two chances to increase their lead but missed. Kenneth Faried missed two free throws but the Nuggets got the rebound. Faried converted a three-point play with 1:04 left to put the Nuggets back on top.
Pero Antic buried a corner 3-pointer with 41.8 seconds remaining, as the shot clock was about to expire, and the Hawks held a 94-92 advantage. Wilson Chandler missed a 3-pointer on the Nuggets’ ensuing possession and Kyle Korver grabbed the rebound.
The Hawks (29-35, 19-11 home) matched a season-high three-game win streak with the victory. They snapped a two-game losing streak to the Nuggets in splitting the season series.
The Hawks had one other three-game win streak this season, beating the Lakers, Kings and Jazz at home Dec. 16-20.
Paul Millsap led the Hawks with a double-double of 23 points, 10 in the first quarter, and 10 rebounds. The Hawks also got double-digit scoring from all five starters with Korver (18), Antic (16), Teague (15) and DeMarre Carroll (11).
The Nuggets (29-37, 13-21 road) had a two-game win streak ended after beating the Heat Friday
Faried led the Nuggets with 25 points. Ty Lawson finished with just two points on 0 of 12 shooting. The guard did have 11 assists and nine rebounds in the strange score line.
The Nuggets trimmed a 21-point deficit to six points, 77-71, going into the fourth quarter. They outscored the Hawks 34-24 in the third period as they used runs of 18-4 to start and 12-4 to end it. The Nuggets shot 75 percent (12 of 16) from the field in the quarter.
After scoring the first six points of the fourth quarter the Nuggets tied the game, 77-77, completely erasing the Hawks’ commanding lead and leaving them in a battle.
The Hawks took a 53-37 lead into halftime after a fast start. The Hawks opened a 13-point lead 4:16 into the game. They led 16-3 after the Nuggets started 1 of 8 from the field and had three turnovers. The Hawks were 5 of 7 from 3-point range in the opening quarter.
The Nuggets rallied to start the second quarter as they used an 11-3 run to cut their deficit to five points. The Hawks closed strong and upped their advantage to 16 points by intermission.
Millsap had 10 points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks in the first half.
The Hawks play at the Bobcats on Monday.
About the Author
Chris Vivlamore is the sports editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He has served as reporter and editor at the AJC since 2003.
