The Atlanta Hawks have continued their winning streak, also winning their seventh straight game. Thanks to a strong Trae Young they beat the Los Angeles Lakers, where LeBron James was injured, with 129:121.
Atlanta Hawks (24-25) – Los Angeles Lakers (24-27) 129:121 (BOXSCORE)
The Lakers were again without LeBron James against the Hawks, who returned to Los Angeles to receive treatment for a knee injury. Lakers coach Frank Vogel said James will not play while his knee is swollen. The guests from LA could count on Anthony Davis, who had to pause the day before in the game against the Charlotte Hornets because of a wrist injury.
In an offensive game, Trae Young led the Hawks to their seventh straight win with 36 points (12/22) and 12 assists. For long stretches, however, it was the Lakers who were in the lead thanks to a strong Malik Monk (33, 8/14 3P).
LA was in good offensive shape throughout the game, even without James. Davis scored 27 points (10/20 FG), Russell Westbrook contributed 20 points as well as 12 assists and 7 rebounds. Carmelo Anthony scored 11 points off the bench, but otherwise only Talen Horten-Tucker from the second row of the Lakers could attract attention with 8 points.
For the Hawks, it was Onyeka Okongwu late in the game who fired up and scored 12 of his 16 points in the last quarter. Collins was next to Young the best scorer at Atlanta and was able to get 11 rebounds in addition to his 20 points. Clint Capela also made a decent game with 15 points and 9 boards and Bogdan Bogdanovic still put up 10 points from the bench.
Lakers take lead thanks to Monk and Davis
The Lakers got off to a better start and led for much of the first quarter. Davis and Monk initially did most of the scoring for the visitors, with Monk showing a good touch from downtown and netting three times from the three-point line. Westbrook served 5 assists but was also responsible for 3 early turnovers. For the Hawks, it was John Collins who kept his team within striking distance before Danilo Gallinari put the home side ahead with the last throw of the quarter.
In the second quarter, Westbrook then increasingly looked for his own finish and was able to score points after several aggressive drives in the zone. On the other side, Young got some easy points at the basket after carelessness in the Lakers defense. Then, towards the end of the quarter, LA started a little run. First Westbrook hit a shot over the board, then Monk quickly added 4 points before he increased the lead of the guests to 9 points with a buzzer beater from the line of three.
Overall, the Lakers showed a well-functioning offensive in the 1st half even without LeBron and converted 74.1 percent of their throws with 30/42 attempts from the field – the best throwing rate by a team in one half this season.
In the third period, the Hawks worked their way back and even took a brief lead, but LA started a small run again in the dying minutes. Monk scored the last 5 points of the quarter and his team went into the final quarter with a 101-91 lead.
Young and Okongwu secure Hawks victory
In the decisive quarter, the Hawks found their way to easy points again and again via the pick and roll and were able to regain the lead. Okongwu then set the scene with a poster dunk over Stanley Johnson after his point guard alley-ooped.
With just under three minutes to play, Young hit a deep step-back two and exploded the hall again. Monk countered again from downtown and leveled the game shortly before the end, but ultimately it wasn’t enough to defeat the Hawks. In the last minute of the game it was Young again who brought the game home for the hosts with a deep three and two converted shots from the free-throw line.
The Hawks continue their winning streak and also win the seventh game in a row, while the Lakers have lost all of their last three games.