The Hawks didn’t win. But they had a shot. They watched a 22-year-old German outduel all of Cleveland’s Big Three for an astonishing stretch and, boats against the current, seized a fourth-quarter lead. Then they lost 104-93.
Sorry if that doesn’t make much sense, but this was one of those crazy playoff nights that all but defy rational thought.The Cavaliers went from 18 points ahead to one behind in less time than it takes to say, “Dennis Schroder from Braunschweig is really quick.” Then you looked again and the Cavs led this series 1-nil.
On the one hand, the Hawks threw a royal scare into King James and his court. They did this on a night when Al Horford, Paul Millsap, Jeff Teague and Kyle Korver — all 2015 All-Stars — missed 30 of 42 shots. (Korver took only one shot; the Cavs inhaled him yet again.)
On the other, the Hawks overrode an 18-point deficit on the road and, after Horford’s hook with 4:28 to play, were in Position A to steal Game 1 on the road. Their next basket would come with 18 seconds left and would trim a 14-point lead to 11.
“They won it more than we lost it,” Korver said, speaking of the Cavs.
“We feel good we gave ourselves a chance,” said Kent Bazemore, the only truly effective Hawks starter this night. “There are no moral victories at this time of year, but there’s a lot to be positive about. Coach (Mike Budenholzer) was very upbeat in the locker room.”
The feeling after Game 1 is that the Hawks, who were mostly embarrassed by the Cavs in last season’s playoffs, showed the East’s No. 1 seed that this series mightn’t be a walkover. But why did it take so long for the Hawks to catch a wave — their first lead came with eight minutes remaining — and why did the wave break once they’d surged ahead?
The Cavs had blown the game open in the third quarter – a LeBron James dunk after his steal made it 72-54 – only to see it come unblown. The Cavs scored two points over the period’s final five minutes; the Hawks scored 16. By then, even the rub of the green was going the visitors’ way: An official review at the quarter break showed a Channing Frye 3-pointer had really been a 2. The lead was down to four.
Schroder’s torching of whomever sought to guard him had gained an accelerant. He scored eight points in the third quarter and galvanized the comeback. Another trey early in the fourth quarter blunted a mini-Cav surge. With 8:51 remaining, the visitors were within a point.
Then they were ahead, Horford dunking off Schroder’s pass to make it 80-79. By now the Cavs were reeling. (Even James was throwing the ball away.) Kyrie Irving scored seven points on the next three trips, but the Hawks answered each basket. Twice it was Schroder, who would finish with 27 points and six assists.
Horford’s hook put the Hawks ahead by a point. J.R. Smith flashed off a screen and flicked a 3-pointer a millisecond before Korver arrived. (“An amazing shot,” Korver would call it.) Schroder missed from the lane. (Hey, he’s human!) Kevin Love made two of three free throws. Cavs by four, 3:30 left.
Budenholzer called timeout. The Hawks sought to run a play for Millsap, but he was fouled by Smith. Cleveland wasn’t yet in the penalty. The Hawks inbounded again. Schroder tried to back Irving down but over-dribbled into James’ double-team and lost the ball. After two offensive rebounds, LeBron converted Irving’s feed while getting fouled. That, finally, was that.
The way they played in the second half suggests that this series could be quite something. The Hawks had a real shot to win on a night when they made only 37.9 percent of their shots. That’s no small thing. But coming close isn’t enough. “Are we over or getting close to the hump?” Korver said. “I don’t know. We’ve just got to get a win.”
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