Peachtree Hoops: Hawks suffer 127-119 defeat to Cleveland Cavaliers on the road

[Hawksquawk]

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Hawks suffered defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a road game on Saturday night. Listed as out for the Hawks were Bogdan Bogdanovic and Clint Capela alongside the usual Jalen Johnson, AJ Griffin, Mouhamed Gueye, and Kobe Bufkin. The starters for the Hawks were Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, De’Andre Hunter, Saddiq Bey, and Onyeka Okongwu. The starters for the Cavaliers, down two starters in Darius Garland and Evan Mobley, started Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Dean Wade, Isaac Okoro, and Jarrett Allen.

the Cavaliers started this game on a 14-3 run, prompting a timeout from Quin Snyder. With no luck after the timeout, Trent Forrest and Patty Mills served as the first substitutions of the game.

The Hawks trailed 41-28 at the end of the first quarter. They allowed 26 points in the paint, as Jarrett Allen scored 17 by himself. Trae Young led the way for the Hawks with eight points.

Trae hits a stepback. pic.twitter.com/xmVVx9g9GS

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) December 17, 2023

The Cavaliers led the Hawks by a score of 70-52 at the end of the first half. The Hawks allowed 32 points in the paint as well as 16 second chance points to their own five. Trae Young’s 12 points led the Hawks, while Jarrett Allen amassed 21 points in the half.

The hawks put together a much better third quarter. A Dejounte Murray midrange cut the lead to just nine with less than five minutes remaining in the quarter.

DJ bucket cuts the margin to single digits, keep workin' y'all pic.twitter.com/KDrjjei8cg

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 17, 2023

The Hawks were unable to further cut into the lead, entering the fourth quarter with a 92-81 deficit.

The Hawks battled throughout the fourth quarter, trailing by nine with six minutes remaining.

Trae Young cut it to seven with a minute and a half remaining, but they couldn’t get the defensive stops they needed to complete a comeback.

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