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.
Article continues after this advertisementTrae 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.
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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.
Article continues after this advertisementKevin 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.
