The Hawks fans witnessed a historic win last night at the Phillips Arena as their team beats the Cavaliers for a second straight time in just a few days. If that win at Cleveland two days ago was impressive, then what was this?
The Atlanta Hawks already clinched a playoff spot, so they didn't need a win here, while Cleveland's first position is still unsafe. LeBron James played 46 minutes and had a big game with 32 points, 16 rebounds, and ten assists, collecting his 13th triple-double of the season. Kyrie Irving added 45 points and nine assists for the visitors.
Paul Millsap was an important guy for the Hawks with some big plays, adding 22 points and nine rebounds to his score sheet. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 21 points for a home team.
Three-quarters of Cleveland's domination
The Cavaliers started the game with a 21-10 run. They led 38-21 after the first quarter, and things were looking pretty sharp for Lebron and the company. Even after 21 point lead at the half, they didn't slow down. The former "Hawk" Kyle Korver hit the three-pointers at the end of the third quarter to give the Cavs their biggest lead of the night - 93-67. It looked like that's going to be a blowout victory for Cleveland.
A fourth quarter and the overtime
Then, it was all about the Hawks.
They started the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run and cut the deficit to 17. But the Cavaliers were maintaining the lead until it started to collapse with 5:15 left on the clock. Mike Muscala made the lay-up with three minutes to go in the regulation, and the lead was cut to single digits. But still, the Hawks were down 109-102 with just one minute left.
Then, Muscala made the three-pointers, Cleveland failed to inbound the ball, and Tim Hardaway Jr. made one free throw to cut the lead to three. After Irving's two had made free throws, LeBron James fouled Millsap on a three-point attempt, and Paul made all three free throws. With just 5 seconds left, Kent Bazemore won a jump ball against Irving, Muscala gained possession and passed the ball to Paul Millsap, who hit the jump shot and sent the game into the overtime.
Atlanta won a quarter 44-18!
Atlanta needed almost three minutes to score in the overtime, after Cleveland's 5-0 run. The referee's made some controversial decisions on both sides, and one of them resulted in a LeBron's 6th personal foul. With James fouled out, Atlanta made a push, and Muscala's three-pointers gave them a first lead of the game with 1:12 left in the overtime. Kyle Korver answered with a three-pointer of his own, but Mike Muscala hit another one. Then Bazemore made an uncontested lay-up after a great steal, and it was 123-120 for the Hawks. Hardaway sealed the game at the free-throw line, and that was it.
Two outstanding games for the Atlanta Hawks against the Cleveland Cavaliers gives them a great confidence for the upcoming postseason. The Cavaliers need to get some answers quickly because after those two games there are a lot of questions...
