Hawks down Magic, maintain fourth place in East
John Collins #20 of the Atlanta Hawks is called for an offensive foul against Moritz Wagner #21 of the Orlando Magic during the second half at State Farm Arena on May 13, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 27 points as the Atlanta Hawks continued their home dominance with a 116-93 victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday.
Bogdanovic, who was questionable to play because of a hamstring injury, made 9 of 12 shots from the floor and joined teammate John Collins in sinking four 3-pointers.
Trae Young collected 18 points and seven assists for the Hawks, who have won 10 in a row at home and 18 of their past 20 games at State Farm Arena.
"It was really important for to make sure that we win those at home. And we did that…It's going to be a huge difference during the playoffs." – @CapelaClint
Presented by @Walmart + where members score even more! pic.twitter.com/xGcxYrpMoi
— x – Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 14, 2021
Clint Capela recorded 14 points and 14 rebounds as Atlanta strengthened its hold on fourth place in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks (40-31) remain a half-game ahead of the Miami Heat and New York Knicks, who are both 39-31 after winning Thursday night.
Kevin Huerter finished with 14 points, Collins added 12 points and Danilo Gallinari had 10 for Atlanta, which completed a three-game season sweep of Orlando.
The Hawks benefited from 14 turnovers by the Magic and enjoyed a decisive edge in made free throws (20-10). Wendell Carter Jr., in fact, recorded Orlando’s first free-throw attempts with 2:47 remaining in the second quarter.
R.J. Hampton collected 18 points and eight rebounds off the bench for the Magic (21-49), who have dropped five in a row. Carter had 12 points and 11 boards, Cole Anthony scored 12 and Donta Hall had 11.
Atlanta scored 16 of the final 20 points of the first quarter to take a 29-16 lead. Gallinari drained a 3-pointer and sank three consecutive free throws to fuel the Hawks, who yielded a season low in points for a first quarter.
The Magic trimmed Atlanta’s lead to 35-29 following a layup by Ignas Brazdeikis, but the Hawks scored 26 of the final 38 points in the second quarter to seize a 61-41 advantage at halftime.
Bogdanovic and Collins each sank a 3-pointer and Young added a mid-range jumper to push Atlanta’s lead to 83-55 with 4:45 remaining in the third quarter. Bogdanovic drained another trey from well beyond the arc to add to the Hawks’ cushion.
