Bogdan Bogdanovic leads streaking Hawks past Thunder
FILE — Bogdan Bogdanovic #13 of the Atlanta Hawks reacts following a play during the first quarter of their game against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center on January 09, 2021 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images/AFP
Bogdan Bogdanovic came off the bench to score a season-high 23 points and help the Atlanta Hawks rout the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder 116-93 on Thursday, extending their NBA-leading winning streak to seven games.
Bogdanovic shot 9-for-14 from the floor and made five 3-pointers in the victory. It was only his second double-digit game since returning on March 2 from an avulsion fracture in his right knee that cost him 25 games. He added six rebounds and three assists.
It marked the first time the Hawks have had a seven-game winning streak since 2016-17 and kept Nate McMillan’s record perfect since he became head coach on March 1.
👀 the BEST of the @ATLHawks 7⃣ game winning streak! #TrueToAtlanta pic.twitter.com/qXgo3gVESd
— NBA (@NBA) March 19, 2021
The victory broke a two-game losing streak to the Thunder and avenged a 118-109 defeat sustained in Oklahoma City on Feb. 26.
Atlanta also got 23 points and nine assists from Trae Young, who was rested during the fourth quarter, and 19 points and three blocks from John Collins.
Oklahoma City got 19 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Reserve Ty Jerome made a career-high six 3-pointers to finish with a career-best 18 points.
The Thunder got Luguentz Dort back in the lineup after he missed two games with a sprained big toe, and Al Horford played again after being rested for two games. Horford scored 11 and Dort added eight. The team was without Darius Bazley (left shoulder) for the fifth straight game.
The Hawks came out hot from the floor, made 11 of their first 17 shots, and took a 25-8 lead on Bogdanovic’s 3-pointer. Atlanta shot 52.3 percent (23-for-44) in the first half, led by as many as 22 points and took a 61-41 advantage into halftime. The Hawks built the lead to 91-67 through three quarters.
The Hawks open an eight-game road trip on Saturday against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Thunder play the third game of a four-game road trip on Sunday at Houston.
