De’Andre Hunter helps Hawks knock off Wolves
De’Andre Hunter #12 of the Atlanta Hawks fouls Ed Davis #17 of the Minnesota Timberwolves during the second half at State Farm Arena on January 18, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images/AFP
De’Andre Hunter scored a season-high 25 points and Clint Capela recorded his fourth straight double-double to help the Atlanta Hawks to a 108-97 win over the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.
Hunter had to leave the game momentarily in the first quarter when he cut his right hand, but he returned to go 8-for-15 from the field, including 3 of 6 from 3-point range. Capela scored 23 points, two shy of his season high, and grabbed 15 rebounds, his second straight game with that many boards.
The Hawks, debuting their unique black uniforms with “MLK” on the front of the jerseys, ended a two-game losing streak. Atlanta entered the game having lost six of the past seven. Minnesota has lost two in a row and nine of its last 10.
Atlanta’s Trae Young, who missed most of the third quarter with foul trouble, added 20 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds. Kevin Huerter added 17 points, eight assists and four steals, and John Collins scored 15 points and blocked a career-high-tying four shots.
Minnesota got 31 points, seven assists and four steals from D’Angelo Russell, who sank six 3-pointers, and 15 points from Malik Beasley.
The Timberwolves were without Karl-Anthony Towns, Juancho Hernangomez and Ricky Rubio, who are dealing with COVID-19 issues. The Hawks were without Cam Reddish, who missed his second straight game with a left knee contusion.
The Hawks used a 12-0 run to take an 18-11 lead in the first quarter. Atlanta led 29-25 after one quarter, pushed the lead to 48-35 with 6:40 left and led 58-51 at halftime.
Minnesota scored the first seven points of the third quarter and tied the game at 58 on a basket by Naz Reid with 10:35 left in the stanza. But Collins responded with a 3-pointer to spark a 17-3 Atlanta run that gave the Hawks a 75-61 lead with 4:30 remaining. Atlanta took a 78-71 advantage into the fourth quarter.
Atlanta led 93-78 with 5:59 left on a 3-pointer by Hunter. The Timberwolves three times cut the deficit to six points before falling short.
