Atlanta Hawks Lose Game 5, Fall Behind 3-2 To Wizards

The Atlanta Hawks had their chances, but couldn’t close in Game 5 of their first round series against the Washington Wizards.

The Atlanta Hawks had a golden opportunity in Game 5. This was their chance to grab control of the series. A Game 5 win against the Washington Wizards would have given them a 3-2 series lead heading into a Game 6 at home.

Instead, the Wizards were the team that took control of the series. Washington came away with a narrow 103-99 win in a game that could have gone either way. John Wall and Bradley Beal were again too much for Atlanta’s defense to handle.

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Wall finished with 20 points and a whopping 14 assists on 9-for-20 shooting. Beal led the Wizards in scoring, pouring in 27 points on 11-for-22 shooting. His aggressiveness attacking the basket and his success from the mid-range helped offset a 1-for-9 effort from beyond the arc.

Marcin Gortat‘s wide screens created open looks for Beal all game. If Gortat ever decides to switch sports, he could make a significant amount of money as a right tackle in the NFL. If the refs don’t call it then it’s not a foul. The Wizards were very crafty on Wednesday night.

Overall Washington shot 45.1 percent from the field and 29.2 percent from three-point range. They have not shot well from outside all series, somehow it hasn’t caught up with them. That shows you how dominant Wall and Beal have been on two-point attempts.

They finally got some help in Game 5. Otto Porter Jr. scored 17 points on 3-for-4 from the field and 2-for-3 from deep. Porter also shot 9-for-10 from the free-throw line. The Hawks had no answer for his hard drives to the basket off of closeouts and often resorted to fouling him at the rim. He took advantage of that, leading to his big night from the line.

Bojan Bogdanovic also provided a spark off the bench. Bogdanovic finished with 14 points on 4-for-7 shooting. His defense was still less than stellar. Anytime both Jose Calderon and Mike Dunleavy Jr. take you off the dribble you’ve got a problem.

Dennis Schroder continued his playoff explosion. He was the best player on the floor for the Hawks. Schroder scored 29 points and collected 11 assists on 10-for-18 shooting. Paul Millsap added 21 points and 11 rebounds on 8-for-19 shooting.

Their teammates struggled to help them offensively. Kent Bazemore and Tim Hardaway Jr. combined to shoot just 9-for-30 from the floor and 3-for-15 from three-point distance. Overall the Hawks shot just 29 percent from outside.

It was another quiet night for Dwight Howard. He failed to duplicate his stellar Game 4 outing. Howard finished the game with just five points and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes. Plays like this infuriated Hawks Twitter.

Taurean Prince looked good again. He shot just 4-for-11 from the field but he had 10 points, six rebounds, and four assists. His movement off the ball continued to be fantastic. He’s clearly developed chemistry with Paul Millsap.

It was a two-point game with only one minute remaining. Dennis Schroder’s three-pointer made it 101-99 Wizards as crunch-time drew to a close. On the ensuing possession, John Wall knocked down a mid-range jumper to make the score 103-99 in favor of Washington.

Neither team would score again and Atlanta would see their hopes of stealing Game 5 on the road eliminated. The Hawks were one stop and one basket away from forcing overtime. John Wall wouldn’t let that happen.

Next: Prince Emerges As 3rd Option

The Hawks and Wizards return to the court for Game 6 on Friday night. The game will tip-off at 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPNU and NBA TV.