Young Atlanta Hawks surprise, defeat Boston Celtics 117-116

On November 13, 2024By Littum

The 9-2 Boston Celtics opened their NBA Cup and are aiming for a three-game winning streak on Tuesday, Nov. 12 when they face the visiting 4-7 Atlanta Hawks.

The Hawks will start the NBA Cup without leading scorer Trae Young due to right Achilles tendinitis, adding to an already extensive injury list. Boston’s fifth home game of the regular season takes place on the colored green home court of the NBA Cup.

Jaylen Brown opened the scoring for Boston with a three-pointer from the top of the key. JB then added a layup and a free throw to open the game and score Boston’s first 6 points.

Boston struggled to shoot the ball from long range, going just 3-12 from three to open the game. Jaylen Brown, who played the entire first quarter, paced the Celtics through the first quarter with 16 points. A late corner three from Sam Hauser saw Boston take a narrow 31-29 lead. Boston struggled to limit the dribble, allowing Atlanta to score 18 paint points in the quarter.

Coach Mazzulla played Tatum and Brown the entire first quarter, and they both sat out the opening portion of the second quarter. To start the second quarter, the team looked to Pritchard and White to keep the scoreboard ticking. Both players hit three pointers in a game where it appeared the coaching staff was trying out some possible new lineup combinations. Mazzulla had played a total of 10 players midway through the second quarter.

With 5 minutes left in the half, Boston started to turn up the intensity. An energetic blocked shot by Queta got the crowd involved. Boston started making its three-pointers late in the second quarter as the team made 6-13 threes. Al Horford hit his first two triples and finished the half with 6 points, while Derrick White added 14 points. White was involved in the highlight of the half with a perfectly timed lob pass to Jaylen Brown, who sailed in from the wing for a two-handed rim rocker.

NBA: Atlanta Hawks at Boston Celtics — Jaylen Brown finished the first half with authority.

After an entertaining first half of NBA Cup basketball, Atlanta’s young players would keep the game within striking distance as Boston led by 11 points, 65-54. Atlanta’s physicality in the first half was highlighted by the fact that they outrebounded Boston 33-22, 11 of which were offensive boards.

The third quarter wasn’t very pretty to watch, Atlanta forced its fair share of turnovers as Dyson Daniels had 4 steals after three and Boston’s turnover rate was high with 14. Midway through the third quarter, Atlanta went on an 18-7 run like Boston’s. largest lead of 15 points began to evaporate. Atlanta outscored Boston behind the hot shooting of Larry Nance, who was 4-5 from three, with 16 points after three quarters. Nance was certainly a surprise player for Atlanta, having recorded a DNP a week ago when these two teams last met. The third quarter would end 91-84 to Boston.

It would be more of the same to start the fourth as Atlanta fought back in the game with just 2 points. An Onyeka Okongwu offensive rebound followed by a Jalen Johnson mid-range jumper saw the score tied for the 10th time of the game after seven minutes.

Derrick White’s three point shooting kept Boston in the game in the fourth as he would go on to score a season high in points with 31. Not to be outdone, Jaylen Brown would also match a season high in points and added 37 of his own. With the score at 108 apiece, Derrick White would step into a long three-pointer as the Boston crowd finally found its voice in the second half.

Jaylen Brown then looked to finish off the Hawks with a three-pointer of his own and a fade away elbow jumper. But in the final seconds, Atlanta came up big as Okongwu got a tip-in with 7 seconds left in the game to take the lead 117-116. Boston then punted the ball out of bounds in what would be a 20th team turnover. Jaylen Brown forced another turnover, and Brown had a chance to win with a last-second shot, but it hit wide of the bucket.

Atlanta hustled and played Boston tough all game. Atlanta finished the game with 20 Atlanta offensive rebounds and Dyson Daniels forced 6 steals and scored 28 points. Jalen Johnson would also finish the game with a triple double for the Hawks.

The Boston Celtics’ next Group C opponents in the NBA Cup will be a big test for the team as they face the conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, November 19 in Game 2 of the tournament. The Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards round out five-team Group C.