SAN FRANCISCO — The Hawks (17-20) started the game slowly but battled back to force overtime before losing 143-141 in double OT on Monday night.
Here are five observations:
1. The Warriors came up big, hitting several key shots down the stretch. But it was Kevon Looney who handed the Hawks the loss on a putback layup. It was his second tip-in attempt of the possession at the buzzer.
It also marked the second time this season the Hawks have fallen to an opponent on an offensive rebound at the buzzer. They fell to the Bulls two weeks ago when Ayo Dosunmu scored on a putback as the clock wound down.
Hawks guard Trae Young, who scored 30 points and had 14 assists, hit his signature floater out of a timeout to tie the game at 141. But the Hawks left eight seconds on the clock, and the Warriors took advantage. They raced down before Klay Thompson pulled up for a 3-point attempt. It didn’t fall, but Looney quickly grabbed the ball and put it up with too much power. He then tipped it in, and it fell as the buzzer sounded.
2. The Hawks fought their way back from a double-digit deficit in the first half and carved out a nine-point lead with just under six minutes left. But the Warriors hit several shots down the stretch to rally.
On top of that, the Hawks’ troubles on the glass continued to plague them. They allowed five offensive rebounds in one minute. Then it caught up with them on the final possession of regulation.
After a Warriors timeout, Thompson, who finished with a game-high 54 points, missed a jumper, and Jordan Poole was there to grab it and dribble over to the corner. He then hoisted up a shot from deep, but the Hawks’ Dejounte Murray blocked the shot. Unfortunately for Murray, he chipped in the direction of the Warriors’ Donte DiVincenzo, who buried the 3-pointer and left 0.6 seconds on the clock.
DiVincenzo’s shot tied the game at 121, and though the Hawks have had success with less time on the clock, Monday was not that night. The game went into overtime.
The Warriors ended up grabbing 18 rebounds in the fourth quarter, with seven of them on the offensive glass.
“We got to work on it,” Hawks wing Bogdan Bogdanovic said. “Really, like, just work on it. I mean, (the Warriors) are a great team. They know what they’re doing. And they’re really, like, attacking these gaps. They know the rebounds are going to be there. They play that way. They play, they’ve (built) the system over years. So, they all know their roles. So, they’re more experienced than us.”
3. The Hawks returned from halftime with far more urgency, putting up 42 points in the third quarter to erase a 17-point deficit.
Young played methodically in the third period and found the right opportunities to get his teammates involved in the offense. Young doled out nine assists in the quarter.
Young found John Collins for a pair of shots at the rim, and Murray found his rhythm off his own looks.
Young found center Onyeka Okongwu for a pair of dunks that continued to chip away at the Warriors’ lead and bring the Hawks within 79-68 with 7:41 to go in the frame.
Bogdanovic, who chipped in 21 points, and De’Andre Hunter, who added another 17 points, connected from long range to bring the game within 84-76.
Young didn’t just feed his teammates, though. He hit a timely 3-pointer that tied the game at 92 with 49.6 seconds remaining in the third.
With the offense clicking, the Hawks also got the right stops, holding the Warriors to 9-of-21 shooting in the third. They outscored the Warriors 42-25 to tie the game at 95 heading to the fourth quarter.
“I thought we (were) a little more patient offensively and not settling for the long ball, making them work defensively, and (were) able to score, get out and get some easy baskets,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said. “But, you know, as we said, they’re not going to change their style. We felt like we could get back into the game like we did. We got to do a better job of finishing these games.”
4. The Hawks needed to kick off their four-game West Coast road trip with a solid outing but did not establish the pace needed to keep the Warriors in check early.
In the first 24 minutes, the Hawks gave up 70 points, with Thompson burning them from deep. They had little answer for the career 41.5% shooter, who shot 4 of 5 from deep in his first seven minutes.
After his fourth 3-pointer in the first quarter put the Warriors up 21-13 with 4:30 remaining, the Hawks turned to Justin Holiday to try to slow down Thompson. While Holiday was able to limit Thompson on a few of his next opportunities, the Warriors veteran turned to his teammates to keep the offense moving.
The Hawks gave up 38 points in the first quarter – which they’ve done three other times so far this season. The Hawks are 2-6 when they give up 34 or more points in the first quarter.
5. Despite the team’s overall struggles, it was one of the Hawks’ best nights on the boards despite the absence of Clint Capela, who was out with a calf strain. Okongwu, who started in place of Capela, had 12 rebounds.
Okongwu, Collins and Murray all finished in double figures on the boards, helping the team to 53 rebounds.
Yet the Warriors outrebounded them 69-53.
Stat to know
42 – Atlanta scored 42 points in the third quarter, its highest-scoring quarter of the season. The Hawks scored their 42 points on .750 FG%, 1.000 3FG% and 1.000 FT%. It’s the club’s first .750/1.000/1.000 quarter since Nov. 29, 2014 (2nd Q vs. Charlotte).
Quotable
“We needed to score. Basically, we needed to score in that situation, and we got the bucket. And so we need to score. We need to get points on it.” – McMillan on the team’s five consecutive points in the final 36 seconds of double overtime.
Up next
The Hawks take on the Kings on Wednesday night.
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