Atlanta Hawks Offense Goes Cold In The Second Half As They Lose To Phoenix 123-115 To Wrap Up Their Road Trip

Atlanta falls to 19-19 after their loss to Phoenix and will return home to face Houston on Saturday

Jan 9, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) against Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) in the first half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

After Trae Young's heroics lifted them to a road win vs Utah on Tuesday, the Atlanta Hawks hoped to finish their six-game road trip with a win vs Phoenix. Atlanta came out firing on all cylinders on offense in the first half, but only scored 43 points in the entire second half and fell to the Suns 123-115 to lose for the fourth time in the five games. After scoring 72 points in the first half, including a 41-point second quarter, the Hawks shooting went cold in the second half, especially from three.

After shooting 67% from three in the first half, the Hawks shooting from deep fell flat in the second half, going 3-14 from beyond the arc. The Suns continued to shoot well and both Bradley Beal and Grayson Allen came off the bench to help put the Hawks away. The Hawks bench outscored Phoenix 38-27 in the first half, but the Suns bench was a catalyst for them winning that game in the second half, outscoring the Hawks bench 29-16.

The Hawks had six players score in double-digits in this game, led by 21 from Trae Young. This was not the best game from Young, but he was far from the reason that the Hawks lost. For the game, Atlanta shot 49% from the field and 47% from three.

The Suns got solid performances from their two biggest stars Kevin Durant (23 points and seven assists) and Devin Booker (20 points and 12 assists), but it was Beal and Allen who had the surprise performances to get the Suns a win. Beal had 25 points on 11-16 shooting and Allen was 7-8 from the field including 5-6 from three. Phoenix shot 58% from the field and 39% from three.

WIth the road trip now over, the Hawks head home to face the Houston Rockets, who have been one of the best teams in the NBA this season.

The Hawks kept Krejci in the starting lineup in place of Johnson and he joined Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, and Clint Capela. Phoenix's first five on the floor were Tyus Jones, Devin Booker, Ryan Dunn, Kevin Durant, and Mason Plumlee.

The Suns might have a poor record, but their talent and firepower is undeniable and it was on full display in the first quarter. Coming into the game, one of the big questions was how Atlanta was going to choose to defend Kevin Durant without Jalen Johnson . The Hawks used a combination of the rookie Risacher and De'Andre Hunter off the bench, but it was ineffective. Durant scored 14 points in the opening quarter and it was an incredible shot-making display from the Suns. They would go on to shoot 75% in the opening quarter, including 50% from three. Booker and Jones contributed eight points each and the Suns were rolling.

Good things for Atlanta was that their offense was able to keep them within striking disatance.

Despite foul trouble to Hunter (three fouls in the first quarter alone.), Atlanta would shoot 52% from the field and 58% from three in the first quarter, including a surprising nine points from David Roddy off the bench. Roddy has not been a regular part of the rotation, but when called upon tonight, he showed up. Roddy nailed a buzzer beating shot to end the first quarter and Atlanta trailed 38-31.

The Hawks kept it close in the first quarter and that allowed their second quarter explosion to give them the lead.

Atlanta's three-point shooting had perhaps the best first half they had all season. In the second quarter alone, the Hawks went 5-6 from three and had huge quarters from Young and Bogdanovic to lead the way. Phoenix cooled down a little bit on the offensive end and the Hawks outscored the Suns 41-30 in the second quarter and it gave the Hawks a 72-68 halftime lead. Not only was the shooting hot, the Hawks did not have a turnover in the second quarter. Atlanta was shooting a staggering 60% from the field and 67% from three at the half. Young and Bogdanovic had 13 each and Roddy scored 11 off the bench.

Phoenix shot 61% from the field and 41% from three. The Suns had five players in double-digits and Durant led the way with 16. The three point shooting had the Hawks ahead at the half.

As prolific as the second quarter was for the Hawks, they came back down to Earth in the third and a lot of credit goes to Phoenix for making the necessary adjustments at the half. The Suns started the quarter on a 7-0 run to quickly grab the lead and they controlled it from that point forward. The Hawks shot 35% from the field and went 1-7 (14%) from three in the third quarter. Phoenix was not great from three (2-9), but shot 58% from the field and got nine more points from Bradley Beal to give them the lead 98-92 heading into the final quarter. The Hawks offense was going to need to rediscover their rhythm in the final quarter if they wanted to steal a win on the road.

The fourth quarter saw the Hawks try to catch up with a late run in the last couple of minutes, but it was not enough. Phoenix held them off for the eight point win and now the Hawks have a tough game ahead on Saturday vs the Rockets.