Peachtree Hoops: Hawks cruise to first victory in dominant win over Bucks, 127-110

[Hawksquawk]

Jalen Johnson earned his first start of the season, seemingly in order to matchup with two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Bucks were missing Khris Middleton, but still had enough firepower between Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard to give Atlanta fits tonight.

The Hawks got off to a hot 12-4 start behind swarming defense and good ball movement on offense. Newsflash: Trae Young remains extremely adept at distributing the ball.

Fastball like Smoltz @TheTraeYoung | @CapelaClint pic.twitter.com/eXg1Q0Lnc6

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) October 29, 2023

Later, Jalen Johnson had an emphatic block that was initially called a foul but was changed after a Quin Snyder challenge.

Clean as a whistle pic.twitter.com/xIi3ce8o4a

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 29, 2023

After one quarter, the Hawks led 31-25 behind balanced scoring from all Hawks who received minutes.

The Hawks offense ran cold in the first couple of minutes of the second quarter. But then, Atlanta and Milwaukee began trading deep bombs, and the Hawks were able to pull out to a 48-33 edge by the 6:00 mark in the period.

Jalen Johnson has continued his strong two-way play this season with improvement in his spot up shooting, like on this attempt from the corner behind great ball movement.

‍ Raise your hand if you wanted to see a Jalen Johnson breakout. pic.twitter.com/g4x6T3VcFh

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) October 30, 2023

Atlanta continued to dominate en route to a 22-point lead at one point in the first half.

Atlanta went into halftime up 68-47. Jalen Johnson led the way with 14 points, five rebounds, and a solid defensive showing in the most difficult matchup of the night. Dejounte Murray added 14 points, three assists, and two steals as a result of pesky perimeter defending. Damian Lillard was held scoreless in the first half with the collective effort spearheaded by Murray’s on-ball defense.

The Hawks picked up where they left off in the second half with more crisp passing and hot shooting. Here, Dejounte Murray somehow sets Clint Capela up with a layup around a double team.

A little bit of Dejounte magic. pic.twitter.com/eQx6AoK0DU

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) October 30, 2023

And below, ‘Bogi’ does a nice job of drawing multiple defenders on a drive to set Onyeka Okongwu up with the lob.

Bogi
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Big O pic.twitter.com/s72nT7VDw6

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 30, 2023

The Hawks continued to put the clamps on Damian Lillard through three quarters, who began the night 0-for-9 from the field.

After 36 minutes, the Hawks led 101-80. It remained a very balanced attack for Atlanta, who claimed eight players with between 10 and 15 points at this point in the game.

The Hawks didn’t let their foot off the pedal in the fourth quarter and coasted to their first victory of the season. With both teams pulling most rotation players by halfway through the period, it signaled an exhibition-like atmosphere for the last six minutes of the game. At long last, the Hawks secured their first win of the new season, 127-110.

Trae Young had his best game of the young season with a 20-point, 11-assist night. 12 different Hawks finished with at least 12 points including Dejounte Murray, whose two-way impact led to a game-high 26 +/-. The win moves Atlanta to 1-2 on the season with a chance to reach .500 with a win tomorrow night at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

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