Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – Kyle Korver scored 27 points and helped lead
a second-half rally that propelled the Atlanta Hawks to a 103-96 victory over
the New York Knicks in the opener of a home-and-home series.
Korver knocked down 6-of-9 attempts from 3-point range, with four of those
makes occurring after halftime, as the Hawks overcame a 13-point deficit at
the break to halt a two-game skid and send the Knicks to a fourth consecutive
loss.
Atlanta also held Carmelo Anthony in check over the final two quarters to come
back, with just six of the All-Star forward’s 20 points coming after
intermission.
“We were more focused on our defense,” Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer said
of the second half. “The offense will come, we’ll make shots and guys will
finish. Defensively is where we need to keep our focus.”
Jeff Teague added 19 points for Atlanta and Paul Millsap recorded a double-
double of 11 points and 13 rebounds.
Iman Shumpert finished with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting for slumping New
York, which received 15 points from Tim Hardaway Jr. Anthony tallied nine
rebounds in addition to his 20-point effort.
The Hawks trailed 61-48 at the half and were down 10 midway through the third
quarter before closing out the period on an 11-3 run, which Korver began by
draining a triple. Thabo Sefolosha contributed six points during the flurry,
the last two on a driving layup off a Dennis Schroder steal that put Atlanta
up 75-74 heading into the fourth.
Hardaway’s 3-pointer with 5:59 remaining gave New York a brief 88-87 edge, but
Korver sank another trey around a pair of Teague layups to give the Hawks a
six-point lead with four minutes to go.
Shumpert converted a finger-roll shot to get the Knicks back within four, but
Carroll hit an open three from the corner with 1:25 left for a 97-90 advantage
and Atlanta held on the rest of the way.
“It happened so fast,” said Anthony of Atlanta’s comeback. “I thought they
made some adjustments, kind of picked their tempo up in the third quarter.
They outscored us (27-13) in the third. You ain’t going to win games like
that, to be honest with you.”
Returning home from a tough double-overtime loss in Charlotte on Friday, the
Hawks were sluggish early on. Atlanta shot just 27.3 percent in the first
quarter and fell behind by double digits midway through the frame after a 9-0
run staked the Knicks to a 19-7 lead.
The Hawks trailed 32-20 after one quarter but made some headway in the
second, with Korver recording six points during a 12-2 stretch that pulled
Atlanta within 38-35 with just over six minutes left in the half. New York
countered with an 8-1 flurry, however, and went up by as many as 15 points
before cruising into the break owning a 61-48 advantage.
Anthony led the charge by dropping in 14 first-half points and pulling down
eight rebounds. He managed just one basket in the third quarter, however, and
went scoreless in the fourth until hitting a 3-pointer in the final minute.
Game Notes
Anthony finished 8-of-20 from the field and just 2-of-9 in the second half …
Schroder finished with career highs of 11 points and five steals in 20 minutes
off the bench … Knicks point guard Pablo Prigioni sat out a second straight
game with a sprained right ankle … Atlanta recorded 10 steals to New York’s
two … The teams will square off again Monday in Madison Square Garden.
