The Atlanta Hawks won a heart-pounding thriller over the Los Angeles Lakers, 134-132, at a rowdy State Farm Arena Friday night. They have now won six games in a row, their best winning streak in years. Fans of both teams could hardly sit down, as Atlanta used the extra period to send the reeling-Lakers to their fourth loss in five games.
Trae Young hit the game-winning three-pointer with 8 seconds remaining in overtime, and with no timeouts, the Lakers pushed the ball and LeBron James missed a 31-foot three-point attempt that essentially ran the clock out to secure an Atlanta victory.
The game was back-and-forth for the most part, but the action really picked up in the fourth quarter. Both teams had chances to close it out in regulation, but squandered opportunities. LA held a 117-116 lead, until De’Andre Hunter cashed a 25-foot three-pointer, following an offensive rebound by Trae Young that was tapped out to Dyson Daniels. James came back and converted a layup to tie the game at 119.
Atlanta used a timeout to try and draw up a plat to win in regulation, but had a poor play design that ended up with Trae Young taking a 29-foot three-point attempt which was blocked by Lakers guard, Max Christie.
Overtime was much of the same, a nail-biter all the way to the end but fast forward to maybe the most important sequence in the game. Dyson Daniels stole a lazy pass from Anthony Davis to James, and was blocked by James on the layup attempt. After official review, it was found that the ball actually went out on Daniels and was LA’s ball.
Following the successful Lakers challenge, a subpar inbounds pass led to a jump ball between Daniels and Davis. Davis tapped the ball back and it was a scramble for a loose ball, which was eventually tapped out of bounds by James.
Atlanta received the ball with 19.1 seconds remaining, and the rest is history following Young’s made three-pointer.
It was a monster night for stats across the board, but starting with Atlanta. The bench was incredible again, and a huge reason why Atlanta won this game. Atlanta outscored LA’s bench 65-17.
De’Andre Hunter kept up his campaign for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award, with 26 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. He was 5-of-7 from three and 9-of-15 overall.
Bogdan Bogdanovic chipped in 20 off the bench and Onyeka Okongwu added in 15 points with 6 boards. It should be noted that Bogdanovic has now hit a three-pointer in 100 straight games.
But the real star of the night was the Hawks franchise player, and that was Trae Young. Including the game-winner, he finished with a franchise record of 31 points and 20 assists, the first of its kind in Hawks’ history. He is also the first player in NBA history to have a 30-point, 20-assist game, while making five three’s. Truly a special night.
Los Angeles was led by their dynamic duo of James and Davis, and almost pulled out the victory because of the two. James finished with a triple-double of 39 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds. James shot an efficient 14-of-25 overall, and 6-of-11 from three. Davis nearly had a triple-double himself with 38 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists.
Atlanta will put their winning streak on the line again, against the Denver Nuggets at home on Sunday. Tip-off for that match-up is at 6:00p.m. eastern.
