Dejounte Murray's Buzzer-Beater Lifts Hawks Over Magic 106-104

Atlanta is now 17-23 this season after their win over the Magic

What a game tonight in Atlanta. 

It was a low-scoring, back-and-forth affair, a style that usually favors the Magic, but Dejounte Murray's buzzer-beater shot gave the Hawks their second win of the season over Orlando. 

It was not pretty and the game was filled with turnovers and poor three-point shooting, but it was a thrilling finish, which is par for the course when these two teams play each other this year. 

Let's recap the game. 

The Hawks did not have any surprising news on the injury report and the starting lineup remained the same. Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, Saddiq Bey, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela. 

Orlando started Caleb Houstan, Jalen Suggs, Chuma Okeke, Paolo Banchero, and Goga Bitadze. They were missing Franz Wagner and Gary Harris. 

The Magic are not known for their offense, but they can slow a game down and make you play their style of basketball. They are a team that wins with defense and forces you to make mistakes and turn the ball over. It was clear Atlanta was going to have to beat Orlando at its own game tonight from the start. 

At the first timeout with 6:48 to go in the first quarter, the Magic led the Hawks 13-8 and Atlanta already had four turnovers. After starting the year off as one of the worst teams in the NBA when it came to turnovers, Atlanta came into this game ranked 13th in turnover rate, but they had a huge problem with turnovers throughout this game. 

Trae Young vs the Magic / Jordan Godfree-USA TODAY Sports

The two teams kept battling through the first quarter and for the first time in what seems like a long time, Hawks head coach Quin Snyder opted to use Capela and Onyeka Okongwu in the lineup together. 

At the end of the first half, the game was tied 26-26 and both teams were struggling to shoot the ball, especially from three. Both teams combined were 4-18 from deep and that is a trend that would continue throughout the game. 

The low-scoring game would continue in the second quarter and so would the Hawks's turnover issues. With 6:09 left in the 1st half, Orlando led 40-34 and the Hawks had 12 turnovers. Still, the Hawks were hanging around and Young was making spectacular passes as usual. 

Not even the replay of this Trae pass does it justice 🍎 pic.twitter.com/whPiuAP61b

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 18, 2024

At the half, Orlando led 51-49. The Hawks were shooting 51.4% from the field and 25% from three. Orlando was shooting 42% from the field and 15% from three. 

Murray led the way for the Hawks with 12 points. The bad thing for the Hawks was the No. 14, the amount of turnovers the team had at the half. 

The third quarter has been a nightmare for the Hawks this season and they have let teams either build a big lead on them or they blow big leads in this quarter. 

But not tonight. 

Things did not start off well for the Hawks in the second half. At the first timeout with 6:49 left in the third quarter, Orlando led 68-61. After the timeout, Snyder stuck with the Capela and Okongwu pairing like he did in the first half. Atlanta was able to cut into the lead and trailed by three at the next timeout with 2:53.

The Hawks led the Magic going into the fourth quarter 78-76 and they actually won the third quarter 29-25. It has been a point of emphasis for Snyder to get things turned around in the third quarter and he did that tonight. 

Goga Bitadze and Onyeka Okongwu / Jordan Godfree-USA TODAY Sports

The way this game was going, it was going to be a close finish in Atlanta. Neither team could really pull away from the other and both kept making crucial mistakes. 

With 2:30 left in the game, Atlanta led the Magic 98-97 after a pair of Trae Young free throws. The ensuing possession for the Magic resulted in a turnover and then Murray hit a bucket for the Hawks to put them up 100-97. Markelle Fultz hit a layup on the other end to make it 100-99 and then a timeout was called with 1:24 left. 

With Orlando over the limit, Atlanta (one of the best teams at drawing fouls) went to work on Orlando and Trae Young drew a foul and went to the line. He hit both and the Hawks led by three. 

Orlando got aggressive going to the basket and Okongwu fouled Jalen Suggs with 56.1 left. He split the pair, Orland got the offensive rebound, and then a foul was called on Young with 40.1 seconds left. Wendell Carter Jr split the pair and Atlanta led 102-101. 

Coming back down the court, the strategy was the same. Young drew the foul, went to the line and both free throws to make 104-101. 

Orlando came back down the court and one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the NBA was in need of a three-pointer to tie the game. What looked like a horrible possession for the Magic ended with Paolo Banchero hitting a step-back three to tie the game with nine seconds left. 

Instead of calling a timeout, Snyder let the Hawks play it out and hope for the best. Dejounte Murray drove left, dribbled around, and then put up a shot that won the game for the Hawks. State Farm Arena exploded after Murray's shot went in and the Hawks closed out the Magic for their second straight win. 

𝗗𝗘𝗝𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗧𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗦 𝗜𝗧 pic.twitter.com/O57DOGM4o5

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) January 18, 2024

It was a gutsy shot and it gave the Hawks their second straight win and moved them to 17-23 this season. 

For the game, Atlanta shot 51% from the field and 32% from three. Murray led the way for the Hawks with 26 points and of course the game-winning shot. Six Hawks were in double figures tonight. 

Orlando shot 44% from the field and 28.6% from three tonight. Banchero had 26 points, while five other Orlando players were in double-figures. 

Next up for the Hawks is a matchup with the Miami Heat on the road. Tip-off is set for 8:00 on Friday. 

Quin Snyder On Hawks Third Quarter Woes: "It is Obviously Something That We Are Aware Of"

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