With a career night from Trae Young, the Hawks (13-36) overcame a late push from the Sixers (31-18) in a 127-117 win Thursday at State Farm Arena.
Below are some takeaways from the win:
1. With a game-high 39 points (9-22 FG, 3-9 3-point range, 18-20 FT) and career-high 18 assists, Young played like the All-Star starter he is, paving the way for the Hawks’ offense in the win (and adding two steals to boot). It didn’t take Young long to heat up, with a double-double of 14 points and 10 assists in the first quarter alone, and the Sixers couldn’t find a way to slow him down. The Hawks led by eight going into the second quarter, with Young accounting for 37 of their 39 points in the first. Young has recorded five straight double-doubles with 13-plus assists. “I was just seeing what they were giving me,” Young said of his early success. “Coming off pick-and-roll, just trying to make plays and you can’t get assists without your teammates making plays too. They were making shots, getting to the hole and catching my lobs.”
2. The Hawks worked their way up to a 90-77 lead off a Kevin Huerter 3-pointer with 6:09 left in the third quarter, but the Sixers fought to make it a five-point game heading into the fourth and again cut it to five with 1:41 left. Cam Reddish found John Collins for a timely dunk to pull ahead 121-114, and the Hawks limited the Sixers to shooting 31.6% from the field in the fourth quarter as they held on for the win. The Hawks took smart shots, used the clock wisely and stayed organized down the stretch. That helped them stay ahead, coach Lloyd Pierce said postgame: “When you’re organized, you can go get offensive rebounds. When you’re organized, you can move the ball and make or miss, you’re going to get a good look. You’re going to buy some time, you’re going to make them work, you’re going to get to the foul line. All of those things start to come in play.”
Credit: John Bazemore
Credit: John Bazemore
3. John Collins pulled down a season-high 20 rebounds, to go with 17 points. Despite going up against Philadelphia’s size and All-Star center Joel Embiid, the Hawks won the rebounding battle 48-42, with 10 offensive boards to Philly’s eight. Collins carried the bulk of that load, which was crucial with centers Alex Len (right hip flexor strain) and Bruno Fernando (left calf strain) out for the night. This marked his 11th double-double in 23 games played for Collins (missing 25 games due to suspension). “Type of night my team needs me to have,” Collins said. “Undermanned in the frontcourt side, so definitely needed to have a bigger effort on the boards and in the inside, finishing, scoring, and I think I did my job.” Embiid, who lit the Hawks up in their last meeting with 36 points in October, finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
4. The Sixers give up 104.8 points per game, the second-fewest in the NBA (Orlando is first with 104.7), and they’ve got the third-best defensive rating (105.1), but the Hawks seem to be a tough matchup for them, besting them 3-1 last season and evening it to 1-1 so far this season. Overall, the Hawks shot 48.3% from the field to the Sixers’ 46.3% and 31.4% from 3-point range (11-for-35) to the Sixers’ 29% (9-for-31).
5. With the win, and thanks to some recent losses for Cleveland and New York, the Hawks are now in a three-way tie with the Cavaliers and Knicks for last place in the Eastern Conference standings. They play Dallas Feb 1, then play Boston at home, their next chance to finally get out of the conference basement.
By the Numbers
63.6% (what the Hawks’ shot from the field in the first quarter)
Quotable
“Vince was our sacrificial lamb. If someone’s going to get in foul trouble, we needed Vince to do it and not John (Collins).” (Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce on Vince Carter, who scored 14 points and guarded Joel Embiid for much of the night)
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