The Atlanta Hawks were at home on Friday evening to take on the Phoenix Suns. The Hawks were coming off a clutch win two days ago against the Memphis Grizzlies, and hoping to continue that momentum against one of the better teams in the Western Conference.
The last time these two teams faced off, it was a comeback thriller for the Hawks, as they won after overcoming a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
Onyeka Okongwu got things started for the Hawks with a three-pointer.
The Hawks got into transition early, and Jalen Johnson found Corey Kispert for a three-pointer.
The Hawks were being rewarded for their defense on the other end, and pulled away slightly in the first for a minute. The transition points continued to pile up for the Hawks, and Johnson took this one for himself.
The Hawks continued to create easy opportunities for themselves, and it was even scoring throughout. The Suns started to make some shots late and ended up taking the lead late. The Hawks trailed 31-27 going into the second.
Luke Kennard got it going early in the second for the Hawks with two three-pointers and helped them take back the lead.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker absorbed contact on this play in transition to get the layup.
The Hawks were able to string together a few stops throughout the quarter, and capitalized on the other end to help extend their lead. It was the CJ McCollum show down the stretch of the first half, and he was able to get almost any shot he wanted.
Alexander-Walker joined in on the fun with McCollum, and both were able knock down three-pointers late in the game.
The Hawks went into halftime with a 64-59 lead.
The threes kept raining for the Hawks to start the second half, and back-to-back shots from Okongwu and Alexander-Walker helped them take a double-digit lead at one point.
The Hawks maintained the lead for a little while, but the Suns came storming back and went on a run themselves. It was the turnovers that doomed the Hawks in the third, and the Suns found every way to capitalize on the other end.
The Hawks kept battling late in the third, and they had to lead with their defense. Christian Koloko played some good minutes against the Grizzlies, and he did the same in this game.
Kennard kept shooting the lights out and helped the Hawks stay in the game.
The turnovers continued to hurt the Hawks, and they ended the quarter with more turnovers than field goals made. Going into the fourth, the Hawks trailed 91-84. One thing to take note of for the Hawks was Devin Booker going down late in the third.
The Hawks fought to start the quarter, and were able to keep things close. Johnson got this big putback dunk after a miss.
Okongwu tied the game with a three.
The game went back-and-forth late in the fourth, and the Hawks had just been in this situation with the Grizzlies. It started on the defensive end, as the Hawks were able to get some key stops.
A couple of shots from Johnson and McCollum helped the Hawks keep the lead, and more stops on defense sealed the deal for their second straight win.
Johnson finished with 23 points, 18 rebounds, and nine assists, Okongwu finished with 25 points, and McCollum finished with the 21 points.
The Hawks will be back in action on Monday against the Indiana Pacers.
