It seemed like a normal night at the office for Boston. Thirty points ahead (68-38) a full minute before halftime, Jayson Tatum still hot (37 points and 8 rebounds in the end) and a tenth victory in a row which was taking shape for the team with the best record in the NBA, this time in Atlanta. Two quarters later? Defeat of the Celtics (118-120).
Yes, the Hawks have achieved an astonishing comeback, the biggest ever achieved by the franchise since the NBA kept advanced statistics (1997-1998). It ended with a 3-point basket from DeAndre Hunter (24 points in total) following a decisive offensive rebound from Clint Capela (14 points, 12 rebounds), which exploded the State Farm Arena.
“It’s a hard pill to swallow”
Jayson Tatum, Boston’s leading scorer
A 9-0 before the break had already marked the improbable comeback (56-74), but it was especially upon returning from the locker room that everything changed. With Bostonians probably a little too quickly too quiet. “We slowed down in the second half and they found a great rhythm,” lamented Tatum. The pill is difficult to swallow. » While his Celtics struggled to score, the Hawks quickly came back (75-78) and everything came down to the last quarter, where the back-and-forth between the two teams ended with the decisive shot from Hunter.
“It’s as if everything we did was going well for us, a really good time,” recalled leader Vit Krejci (16 points), the image of a team that worked perfectly (six players at 13 points or more). Deprived of Trae Young for several weeks, the Hawks remain in the fight for a place in the play-in. For Boston, this setback has no consequences in the ranking, as they are crushing the Eastern Conference. But they will have to get back on track in their next match. Which will take place in Atlanta, in three days, against these same Hawks.
2024-03-26 05:33:38
#Trailing #points #Atlanta #overthrows #Boston #NBA
