Game Recap: Hawks Fall to Lakers 114-109

Kobe Bryant‘s nine fourth-quarter points help seal the Hawks’ first home loss

It’s not often the Hawks come into a matchup as the favorites against the Lakers. It’s also not often a 1-9 team visits Philips Arena and comes away with a win. Somehow this was the result Tuesday night as the Lakers topped the Hawks, 114-109, earning their second victory of the season.

A number of issues emerged early in the game for the Hawks as the pace remained slow throughout the first quarter. The slow pace could be attributed to the 9 first-quarter fouls in favor of the Lakers that allowed them to jump out to an 11-point lead. The Hawks’ offense looked flat from the start, with only Paul Millsap finding success, scoring 13 of the Hawks’ 20 first quarter points. The pace of the game may have been the cause of Atlanta’s poor shooting in the first quarter as the offense is used to more non-stop basketball, but this issue would be left behind as the Hawks moved into a game of catch up in the remaining three quarters.

The second quarter was home to more of a defense-optional 12 minutes of action as both teams would record 30+ points in the quarter. The Hawks’ second unit showed signs of life as Kobe rested on the bench through the first five minutes of the quarter, when the Hawks started to draw close, bringing the Lakers lead down to 4 at one point early in the quarter. A series of miscues and missed 3 pointers would allow the Lakers to jump out in front again before a hot finish to the half for the Hawks off of two successful drives by Jeff Teague and two possessions ending in a boost to Paul Millsap’s already impressive scoring total to end the half with a 15 point deficit to the Lakers.

The second half continued the Hawks’ hot streak as the team came out and scored 7 of their first 8 shots, bringing the Lakers’ lead back down to 5. It almost seemed as though the momentum was shifting back in the Hawks’ favor until the Lakers began shooting well themselves, keeping the lead around 5 as the game progressed to the final period. Nick Young dropped a three pointer to finish off the third quarter with a 91-83 lead on the Hawks.

Nov 18, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Jeff Teague (0) dunks over Los Angeles Lakers center Jordan Hill (27) as guard Jeremy Lin (17) is shown on the play in the fourth quarter of their game at Philips Arena. The Lakers won 114-109. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

The Lakers added to their lead early before Kyle Korver established his presence in the game with a three followed by an impressive Al Horford slam to bring the lead back to 5. The next 4 minutes of play would remain static as only two baskets went down for both teams in the time span.

Finally, the game began to pick up at the five-minute mark as both teams traded baskets until a little after the 2 minute mark. The Hawks earned a window of opportunity as Kyle Korver drew a clear path foul on Jeremy Lin. Kyle would make both free throws, but the extra possession was unsuccessful for the Hawks. The Lakers responded with Kobe drawing an and-one foul, pushing the lead out to six.

Jeff Teague dropped an absolute bomb (right) on the Lakers with two minutes left.

The game looked over after a few more possessions before Kyle Korver brought the game close again with a 3 with 8 seconds to go and the Hawks only down 2. The Hawks immediately fouled Ronnie Price, who would split the free throws, then headed into a timeout for an attempt to tie the game on the final play with a three pointer. Play resumed with Pero Antic inbounding. After Kyle Korver failed to find space, the inbound occured, allowing Pero to step in for a last-second attempt that wouldn’t fall. A foul was then called as the buzzer sounded on Jordan Hill, who would go on to make both free throws.

Overall, much was left to be desired by the Hawks’ effort on Tuesday night. Jeff Teague and Paul Millsap’s strong performances seemed wasted with sub-par bench contributions and inability to perform on the defensive glass throughout the night. The length of Ed Davis and Jordan Hill may have been the source of the issues on the glass, but defensively the team struggled altogether, allowing Carlos Boozer to reach a season high 20 points along with Jordan Hill providing 18. Nick Young also made a solid season debut for the Lakers with 17 points and 5 rebounds.

Paul Millsap lead the Hawks with 29 points, and Thabo Sefolosha almost recorded a double double with 10 points and 9 rebounds as he continued to step into the role left by DeMarre Carroll as he recovers from his groin injury.

Going forward, the Hawks will need to address how to find offense when the pace of the game is not to their liking and finding ways to stop the struggle with defensive rebounding that has plagued the team so far. One key element to watch for in the next few games is looking to find more ways to get Al Horford involved in the offense. Al finished Tuesday’s game with only 8 shot attempts leading to 15 points, a figure less than both Thabo Sefolosha, Pero Antic and Mike Scott. The Hawks will get a few days to move forward from the loss.

Next up the team hosts Josh Smith and the Detroit Pistons on Friday at Philips Arena.

—

Don’t forget to “Like” the Soaring Down South Facebook page and “Follow” us on Twitter @SoaringDwnSouth to get up-to-date Atlanta Hawks/NBA news, rumors and analysis conveniently in your news feeds.