It’s a winning streak. It wasn’t easy, but it’s a winning streak.
The Hawks defeated the lowly Bucks 102-97 Thursday night at Philips Arena for their second straight win. It was ugly but at this point the Hawks will take it.
Kyle Korver and Jeff Teague combined to score nine straight points, and 13 of the Hawks’ final 15 points, in the final 2:16 for the win. It was just the Hawks’ third win in the past 17 games.
“We will take all the wins we can get right now,” Korver said. “The last two haven’t been pretty but they are wins. It’s two in a row and we’ll keep building on that.”
The Hawks (28-35, 18-11 home), had not won two straight games since Jan. 31-Feb. 1, wins over the 76ers and Timberwolves. It was the Hawks’ sixth straight win and fifth at home over the Bucks.
Teague finished with 20 points and eight assists. Paul Millsap finished with 17 points, including 12 in the first quarter, and eight rebounds. Korver and DeMarre Carroll each had 15 points.
The Hawks had 13 3-pointers, the 29th time this season they have made 10 or more in a game 29 times. It’s two more than the franchise record of 27 set last season.
The Hawks increased their lead for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference to 3-1/2 games over the Knicks. They are two games behind the seventh-place Bobcats.
“I think we are going to have to play a lot better than this going forward,” said coach Mike Budenholzer, who wrote the word “Aggressiveness” on the locker room white board to implore his team to pick up their play in the second half. “I think the group knows that. Wins are important and we need to build on the win and we need to build on where and when we played well. But I don’t think anybody feels we are settled with two wins in a row.”
The Bucks (13-52, 5-26 road), owners of the NBA’s worst record, have lost two straight and five of six games. Ersan Ilyasova and 22 points and Brandon Knight added 20 points. Zaza Pachulia played his first game at Philips Arena after eight seasons with the Hawks and finished with four points and five rebounds. The Hawks showed a video tribute to Pachulia during a first-quarter timeout that drew applause from much of the crowd.
Khris Middleton hit a jumper, as the shot clock expired, to give the Bucks an 88-87 lead with 3:20 remaining. After Teague had the ball stolen, Knight hit a free throw for a three-point lead with 2:40 left. It would be the Bucks’ last point until 24 seconds remained and they trailed by seven points.
Korver answered with a 3-pointer, on a second try, with 2:16 left to give the Hawks a 90-89 lead. After a Bucks turnover, Teague connected and the Hawks led by three. Elton Brand pulled down a key defensive rebound with 1:25 left and Korver hit a short jumper for a five-point edge.
Brand and Pachulia got tied up wrestling for a loose ball in the final minute. The Bucks controlled the jump ball but could not convert.
Teague put an exclamation point – literally – on the victory with a driving dunk with 27.4 seconds left that gave the Hawks a 96-89 lead. Teague pounded his chest twice as he yelled and looked straight at the Bucks’ bench. Korver, Teague and Millsap all hit a pair of free throws in the final seconds.
The Hawks outscored the Bucks 21-14 in the third quarter to a 68-67 lead into the final period. The Hawks closed the third on a 9-0 run. The final points came on a Shelvin Mack layup converted after a Millsasp block on the defensive end. The final basket, with 35.9 seconds left, gave the Hawks their first lead since 3:06 remaining in the first quarter.
“I think our defense in the third quarter picked us up and allowed us to get back in the game and put us in the right frame of mind where we needed to be,” Budenholzer said. “It started with the last three minutes of the third quarter. I don’t think they scored in the last three minutes. We keep talking about being better defensively and at some point we have to carry it over to the court and do it and the third quarter was encouraging.
The Bucks led by as many as 13 points in the first half and took a 53-47 lead into intermission. They used an 18-6 second-quarter run to reach the double-digit advantage. The Hawks aided their cause with 11 first-half turnovers, seven in the first quarter.
The Hawks closed the second quarter on a 7-0 run to close the gap before halftime.
“It’s crunch time right now,” said Brand, who had six points and seven rebounds. “We are fighting for a playoff spot and we want to be there. Those little things may not show up on the overall outlook on why we won but those things need to be done in order to win.”
The Hawks next host the Nuggets Saturday.
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