Peachtree Hoops: Offense explodes again as Hawks top Blazers to sweep back-to-back

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Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Hawks flashed some of their considerable team-wide potential on Friday evening, zooming to a lopsided win over the Brooklyn Nets. The team was challenged to repeat that effort just hours later, however, with a match-up looming against a rested (and short-handed) Portland Trail Blazers team. While it wasn’t a performance that featured wire-to-wire dominance, the Hawks exploded in the middle portion of the contest and, in the end, Atlanta emerged with a 129-117 victory and a back-to-back sweep.

The evening began in strange fashion, with both teams flailing when it came to execution. Atlanta struggled to score in the early going and, after eight minutes of play, the Hawks trailed by nine points after a spurt by the visiting Blazers.

Things did awaken a bit from there, with a few high-end passes from Trae Young and a late three-pointer from Vince Carter to slash the deficit to five points at the end of the first quarter.

Making difficult passes look EASY pic.twitter.com/E7hrkMDGGK

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 1, 2020

Fortunately, Atlanta’s defense did a respectable job in the first quarter, allowing the offense to come alive a bit in the second period. The Hawks cut the deficit to only one point by the first media timeout, with Kevin Huerter generating a steal and a three-pointer in transition.

You can't score six points on a Pick-6 in basketball, so @KevinHuerter is going to have to settle for three. pic.twitter.com/g45MoIyWoh

— FOX Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnFSSE) March 1, 2020

The home team then pushed the lead to seven points in a hurry, scoring 32 points in the first nine minutes of the third quarter. Slowly, the Hawks extended the margin to ten points and, even with a three-pointer by the Blazers to beat the buzzer, Atlanta took a seven-point edge into halftime.

Let's try that again pic.twitter.com/wp5uo7MMpp

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 1, 2020

pic.twitter.com/ay2PqZzGeG

— FOX Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnFSSE) March 1, 2020

Considering the hideousness of the first period, the Hawks did yeoman’s work in the second, scoring 40 points and converting 57 percent of their field goal attempts, including a robust 6 of 11 from three-point range. Young produced 10 points and eight assists before halftime, and he was joined in double-figures by Huerter and De’Andre Hunter.

Following the break, Atlanta’s offense kicked into high gear, with Hunter scoring 8 of the first 10 points. The Hawks scored 21 points in the first five minutes and, with two high-level passes from Young, the juices were flowing for the home team.

You love to see it pic.twitter.com/BxQoMEdLFV

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 1, 2020

Right on the MONEY pic.twitter.com/6adp9sY6Fz

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 1, 2020

The Hawks took a 16-point lead on a three-pointer from Young and, with the All-Star guard in a groove, he attempted to nutmeg Trevor Ariza. Portland’s veteran forward elected to “stop” the play by shoving Young in the midst of the maneuver and, after some pleasantries were exchanged, Ariza was called for a flagrant-1 foul. The sequence resulted in Young hitting a floater on the next possession, pushing the lead to 20 points, and while he got his own technical foul, the Hawks were in a very favorable position.

Portland did respond to some degree, scoring at a solid clip in the third quarter. With that said, the Hawks were simply too much offensively, shooting 73 percent from the floor in the period. In fact, Atlanta shot a blistering 64 percent from the floor (and 11 of 21 from long distance) in the second and third quarters combined, paving the way for 107 points through 36 minutes and a 17-point advantage as the fourth quarter arrived.

Though the Hawks led by 19 points in the early portion of the fourth quarter, the margin slowly narrowed, with Portland climbing within ten points. The Blazers’ run came with Cam Reddish on the bench, with word breaking later that the rookie swingman was sidelined with low back pain. Atlanta did reverse the negative trend, however, with back-to-back threes from Hunter and John Collins to essentially close out the game with three minutes remaining.

Ultimately, the Hawks slammed the door on a 12-point victory, and it was a win headlined by the offense. The second and third quarters were utterly dominant on that end of the floor and, in totality, Atlanta shot 54 percent from the floor and 18 of 42 from three-point range, with 34 assists to boot.

Much like Friday night’s showing, it was a balanced night in terms of individual contributions, though there were some standout efforts. Young finished with 25 points and 15 assists to lead the way, with Collins adding 24 points and 10 rebounds. Huerter also performed quite well, finishing with 19 points and eight assists, with Hunter producing 22 points.

Following the back-to-back, the Hawks will recover with a day off on Sunday before hosting the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday evening.

Stay tuned.

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