On a Sunday afternoon at Phillips Arena, the Atlanta Hawks fell to the Milwaukee Bucks 117-106, though the Hawks were thoroughly outmatched from the jump and trailed for the game’s entirety.
The Hawks had no answers for the Bucks’ rare combination of speed, size and length, as the away team sprinted out of the gate, antelope-like, to the tune of a 12-2 advantage to start the game.
The home team Hawks were outmatched from the jump, as the Bucks’ rare combination of size, speed, skill and athleticism tortured the Hawks up and down the court on both ends of the floor.
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A few Hawks still had good games, though none of them matched the production of the Bucks’ big guns: superstar unicorn Giannis Antetokounmpo continued his sizzling hot streak, going off for 33 points and 12 rebounds.
His wing counterpart Khris Middleton was the true difference maker for the Bucks, however, as he led the team in minutes and +/- with +26 in 37 minutes of play. He was a killer in the 2nd half, hitting clutch shot after clutch shot, constantly keeping the distance between the teams beyond the reach of a Hawks comeback. Middleton finished with a stellar stat line, and a near triple-double: 27 points, 9 assists and 7 rebounds.
The Hawks fought hard in this game, clawing their way back from massive deficits throughout the game, and had numerous nice performances. In the end, they just couldn’t match the peerless length and positional versatility that the Bucks’ personnel can put forth on a night-to-night basis.
Dennis Schröder, in his second game back from injury, led the the Hawks in points and assists, with 21 and 8 respectively.
Schröder was pesky and opportunistic on defense as well, but he still looks to be affected by the ankle injury he suffered last week against the Nets – his speed was not quite as explosive as it normally would be.
In fact, Schröder looked so winded at times that Isaiah Taylor looked like the Hawks’ best player for a surprising portion of the game in the 2nd half.
Taylor was relentless, pushing the pace and slicing into the lane on offense, which opened up shooters beyond the arc such as Taurean Prince (17 points) and Marco Belinelli (9 points) for open looks.
Taylor also played some hard-nosed defense, bodying players, skittering around screens and surprising ball handlers with some unexpected full-court press action.
While Malcolm Delaney struggled through another tough game, Taylor emerged as a viable option as Schröder’s backup, especially since he looks to be much more explosive and drive-focused than Delaney.
John Collins also put in a solid effort, limiting his fouls after a rough showing against the Nuggets on Friday.
Collins bounced back and led the team in +/- with a +9 to go along with a career-high-tying 14 points and 7 rebounds in 24 minutes of play. Taylor finished second for the Hawks in +/- with a +8.
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The Hawks get a few days off after this tough defeat, returning to action against Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and the 76ers in Philadelphia on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. EST.