The Atlanta Hawks were back in action Tuesday evening to face the Chicago Bulls. No one will forget the game two days ago, where both teams scored 150, but the Bulls came out on top, finishing with 152.
Defense was hard to come by in that game for both teams, and the goal for this game was to make sure that didn’t happen again.
Unfortunately, the Hawks came into the game without two of their best defenders in Dyson Daniels and Mouhamed Gueye, so it would have to be next man up in that department.
The Hawks got on the board first, thanks to Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
Alexander-Walker got right back to that shot possessions later, extending the Hawks’ lead.
The Hawks had a seven-point lead early, but the Bulls erased that quickly, grabbing a three-point lead. The Hawks fought back and got a few shots to go, and Trae Young did a few sit-ups after his and-one.
Hurt finger and all, that didn’t bother Vit Krejci, as he kept the three-pointers falling after his big game a couple of days ago.
Going into the second quarter, the Hawks led 36-30. The second unit came in and controlled the game for the Hawks, and Luke Kennard got on the board with this open mid-range shot.
Asa Newell played some big minutes in the first half with injuries to the frontcourt, and he did some good things on both sides of the ball to help the Hawks keep their lead through the quarter.
Jalen Johnson did a bit of everything in the first half for the Hawks, per usual.
The ball movement was huge for the Hawks as they had 24 assists in the half, and this was one of them that led to another Krejci three-pointer.
It was a completely different half from the last game, and the Hawks actually went into this halftime leading 68-55.
The Hawks maintained their lead to start the third, even with the Bulls picking it up on offense. Young drove to the lane and got another and-one, his second of the game.
Alexander-Walker went 94-feet to guard Josh Giddey, and he was rewarded in the end with a steal and an easy bucket on the other end.
The Bulls tried to cut their deficit as much as they could, but the Hawks had an answer for every potential run. Young turned full playmaker late in the third quarter, dissecting the Bulls’ defense and getting his teammates involved.
Going into the fourth quarter, the Hawks led 105-92. It was rough to start the quarter for the Hawks, as it took them some time to get some points on the board, and that helped the Bulls trim their deficit to single digits. Luckily, Krejci came in to save the day with another three-pointer, his fifth of the night.
Johnson got this tough and-one to go.
As Johnson was going to shoot his free throw, Young and Ayo Dosunmu got tangled up at midcourt, and both received technicals.
That didn’t affect Young, as he continued to find his teammates, racking up the assists.
The Bulls started to fight back late in the quarter, getting their deficit down to one point. It was a game from there, and the Hawks needed to do everything they could to keep the momentum. Unfortunately, the Bulls were able to take the lead late in the quarter.
The Hawks had a chance to take the lead back, but they had missed opportunities, and the Bulls came down and made it a three-point game. Young was able to score quickly and cut the Hawks’ deficit to one, and they came down on defense and eventually fouled. Coby White went to the line and split the free throws, and the Hawks trailed 123-121 with 11 seconds left.
Alexander-Walker was able to get downhill and tie the game at 123 with 1.9 seconds left in the game, enough time for the Bulls to get a shot off.
The Bulls didn’t have to do too much hard work for a shot, as Risacher was called for an out-of-bounds foul at a pivotal time in the game. White went to the line and made his free throw, and then they got the ball back, was fouled, and Nikola Vucevic knocked down both of his free throws to give the Bulls a three-point lead. The Hawks were not able to make the half-court heave, and they suffered another loss.
Johnson finished with 24 points, nine rebounds, and 10 assists, Young finished with 22 points and 15 assists, and Alexander-Walker finished with 21 points.
The Hawks will be back in action on Friday to face the Miami Heat.
