The Atlanta Hawks took care of business and rode the hot start of the big man, Clint Capela, all the way to a date with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday. That’s because they dominated the Charlotte Hornets in their eventual 132-103 victory. Most of that came in the second half of the Play-In Tournament matchup between the division rivals.
Atlanta outscored a frustrated Hornets squad 72-51 in the second half after seeing their 13-point lead get cut down to single-digits before the break.
Trae Young struggled offensively in this one, at least early, finishing with 24 points on a grizzly 33.3% shooting hitting just 1-of-7 threes. He missed his first eight shots but did his best work as a playmaker.
That is where Capela came in and made the Hornets pay.
The Atlanta Hawks are going to be a tough out if Clint Capela is playing like this
Capela was hot right out of the gates, logging eight points and six boards in nine first-quarter minutes alone. His play helped stake the Hawks to a 32-23 lead after 12 minutes of action. He added six boards and three more points in the second half giving him a double-double at halftime.
He also had two blocks and a steal while shooting 80.0% from the floor.
https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/1514400620672811009
The eight-year veteran didn’t score or crash the glass to quite the same extent in the third quarter with just four points and three boards. But he did add three assists, one block, and one assist in just under nine minutes.
Capela played just over three minutes in the fourth quarter with the Hawks going up by as much as 33 points at one point. He did grab two more boards for good measure, though.
"“He was everywhere… We know that he can do that every single night. So when our defense breaks down or whatever happens, we know that he’s got our back and can dominate the paint.” – Danilo Gallinari via Sarah K. Spencer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution."
It wasn’t just Capela’s raw numbers that were impressive, it was how he imposed his will on the smaller Hornets frontcourt. Their biggest body, Mason Plumlee, finished with just three points, four rebounds, and two assists after only seeing 11 minutes.
Going to a small-ball look worked wonders for the Hornets the last time these teams met. That 116-108 Charlotte victory came down to the fourth quarter with Charlotte’s smallish frontcourt beating the Hawks up at every level. This one was over after the Hawks took their eight-point halftime lead and outscored the Hornets 42-24 in the third quarter
This time, Capela and the Hawks held them to 20-of-45 shooting in the paint including just 16-of-30 in the restricted area.
"We all came with that energy, that fire."@CapelaClint x @AnnieFinberg pic.twitter.com/z7NKYgx1Xy
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) April 14, 2022
Cleveland will present an entirely different set of challenges often running two seven-footers on the floor at the same time between the trio of Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen who could return for that contest after missing their final 18 games.
They also have Kevin Love, a champion, who is still a beast on the boards and scoring the ball in spurts. He had a 32-point, 10-rebound outing in their regular-season finale.
The Hawks have also struggled on the road this season going just 16-25 while the Cavs have, coincidentally, gone 25-16 at home.
Capela – finished with 15 points and 17 rebounds – won’t have to go up against all of that by himself. And the Hawks are 3-1 against the Cavs this season with the only loss coming back on October 23.