Peachtree Hoops: Hawks stifle Orlando Magic in 109-92 win

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Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images

The Atlanta Hawks stifled the Orlando Magic on Sunday night, winning by a final score of 109-92. The Hawks would play their first game without Trae Young after he injured his finger on Friday night. He will be reevaluated in four weeks. Paolo Banchero would not be available for the Magic.

The score was 12-9 midway through the first quarter, with Hunter, Fernando, and Garrison Mathews serving as the first substitutions of the game. With 2:48 remaining in the quarter, Kobe Bufkin entered the game for the Hawks. Franz Wagner was having his way, scoring 12 of the Magic’s first 21 points.

The first quarter ended with the Magic leading 22-19, a very low scoring contest. Saddiq Bey’s six points on two made three-pointers led the team. Halfway through the second quarter, the Magic were holding onto a 37-30 lead. De’Andre Hunter, who has been playing well since coming back from injury, continued to score at an efficient rate off the bench.

Back-to-back buckets by Dre pic.twitter.com/m8Em0Lhafh

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 26, 2024

The first half ended with a score of 48-45 in the Magic’s favor. Wagner, Carter Jr., and Caleb Houstan all scored in double digits for the Magic. Hunter and Murray led the way with nine points each for the Hawks.

Bogdanovic tied the game at 51 with a three-pointer early into the second half. After some back and forth, a dunk from Jalen Johnson dunk tied the game at 60, and then a successfully converted and-one layup from Johnson gave the Hawks a 63-60 lead.

JJ is out here finishing. pic.twitter.com/Wu7eBu3O6i

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) February 26, 2024

Dejounte Murray scored a layup and followed it with back to back triples to give the Hawks a 73-69 lead. After that point, the Hawks went on a 10-1 run, ending the third quarter with a 83-70 lead. Murray scored 16 points in the third quarter alone.

The Hawks continued to dominate the game, with a Johnson layup, assisted by Bufkin, extending the lead to 18 points.

Kobe doing some scoring & creating pic.twitter.com/Xs0WUTekrD

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 26, 2024

The Hawks maintained a 12 point lead with just over five minutes remaining in the game. At this point, Quin Snyder called a timeout after the Magic scored on back to back possessions with no answer from the Hawks. The Magic continued on a 17-4 run over nearly five minutes of play, making the score 98-89.

The Hawks successfully put the game away without much of a doubt. A fastbreak dunk from Saddiq Bey would be the last basket of the game, as the Hawks won 109-92.

Final lines

Murray: 25 pts, 11 ast, 9 reb
Johnson: 21 pts, 10 reb, 7 ast, 3 blk, 1 stl
Hunter: 18 pts, 7 reb, 2 stl
Bogi: 17 pts, 5 reb, 3 ast

— joe schmidt (@Joe_Schmidt07) February 26, 2024

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