Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports The Atlanta Hawks were in Orlando on Sunday evening to take on the Magic. The Hawks were looking to get a nasty taste out of their mouth after Friday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers. The Magic have been playing well all season but were without some of their top players this evening. Similar to Friday, the Hawks got off to a slow start and couldn't find a rhythm on offense, while the opposing team is super efficient. Down 16-3, the Hawks stopped relying upon jumpsuits and started taking the ball to the paint. Fellas starting to get to the rack! pic.twitter.com/8nm0VjT3jK— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 7, 2024 Dejounte Murray continued his strong play from Friday, scoring 11 points and bringing the Hawks back into the game. DJ with another and-1He finishes with 11 in the 1st quarter
pic.twitter.com/vqbDomJzkF— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 7, 2024 What started as a slow start ended up being a solid quarter from the Hawks, as they only trailed 32-28 after being down double digits. The Hawks kept their high energy going into the second quarter with a 9-2 start and took the lead as well. It was no other than Bogdan Bogdanovic who grabbed the lead with this shot. Bogi BucketsFirst lead of the night pic.twitter.com/s80E7jMhCC— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 7, 2024 Onyeka Okongwu got in with the fun and slammed home this dunk in transition. BIG O POSTER pic.twitter.com/xGrDfaxZEI— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 7, 2024 Everything started working for the Hawks down the stretch of the first half, including two tough and-1s from Murray and Trae Young. The Hawks finished the half on a 13-2 run and led 60-51 going into halftime. DJ and 1
Trae and 1#NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/tWA3a4VjI1— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 8, 2024 The third quarter was more competitive, with the Magic taking back the lead for most of the quarter. Murray kept doing what he did best in the first half, which was to attack the rim. Keep attacking DJ pic.twitter.com/wykBoZOc6b— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 8, 2024 The Hawks offense slowed down in the third, as they only scored 18 points, and trailed 85-78 going into the fourth. In the fourth, the Hawks turned defense into offense keeping themselves within striking distance. OO Blocks
Bogi cashes in pic.twitter.com/tgNwgKNO45— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 8, 2024 Minutes later, Okongwu did the same thing which led to a big three from Young. ANOTHER OO rejection leads to a long Trae 3 pic.twitter.com/NLxmPr30eA— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 8, 2024 Down the stretch, the Hawks had several chances to cash in on making the game closer or even taking the lead, but easy missed shots and free throws haunted them. Murray got another and-1 during crunch time. CLUTCH drive by DJ pic.twitter.com/gje4EUVumw— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 8, 2024 With 18 seconds left the Hawks tied the game and the Magic decided not to call a timeout. They were not able to convert, which meant overtime was underway. The Hawks trailed from the beginning of overtime and couldn't get back into the game. Young finished with 31 points and nine assists, Murray finished with 24 points, and Bogdanovic finished with 18 points.
Source: https://www.peachtreehoops.com/2024/1/7 ... o-banchero