Nets Use Big Second Half To Defeat Hawks 114-102 And Shorten Atlanta's Lead For Last Play-In Spot

Atlanta is back on the court Tuesday when they face the Knicks

After being embarrassed by the Nets on Thursday, the Hawks got another chance at the Barclays Center to beat Brooklyn. As far as the NBA play-in tournament race is concerned, this was a really important game. After Thursday's loss, the Hawks only led Brooklyn by three games for the No. 10 spot in the Eastern Conference. 

After another loss to the Nets today, the lead is down to two games and Brooklyn now owns the season series vs the Hawks. It was a disappointing effort for the Hawks today after Thursday's loss and it once again highlighted how much this team misses Trae Young. 

Coming into the game, the Hawks went with the same lineup. Dejounte Murray, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Saddiq Bey, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela were the first five on the floor for Atlanta. 

The Nets were still without Cam Thomas and Ben Simmons for this game and they started Dennis Schroder, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Nic Claxton. 

On Thursday, the Nets got out to a big lead. Today, it was the Hawks who enjoyed a strong start, especially on defense. Atlanta led 28-21 after the first quarter, with Bogdanovic and De'Andre Hunter leading the way for the Hawks with six points. Hunter, Bruno Fernando, Kobe Bufkin, and Garrison Matthews were the subs today for the Hawks. 

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After torching the Hawks' defense on Thursday night, Cam Johnson got off to another strong start today. He scored eight points in the opening quarter and the Nets held a big rebounding advantage of 18-10 over the Hawks after the first quarter. 

The Hawks had an eight-point lead halfway through the second quarter, but that is when Brooklyn started to get things to click on offense. They cut a big effect to just two at the half 62-60 and Brooklyn had all the momentum going into the half. 

The Hawks shot 53% from the field and 46% from three and both Hunter and Bey had 14 points each. Murray had a solid first half as well with nine points and ten assists. 

Brooklyn shot 46% from the field, but 55% from three. They shot the ball well from three in both games, far better than Atlanta. Bridges had 20 points in the half, while Johnson had 14. 

Mar 2, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) drives past Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges (1) in the first quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

On Thursday night, Brooklyn took over the game in the third quarter. This afternoon, it was the same story. 

Brooklyn outscored the Hawks 30-18 in the third quarter and that lead lasted the rest of the way. Atlanta shot 25% in the quarter and was 1-6 from three. Much like Thursday night, you tell how much the Hawks missed Trae Young on offense. Atlanta never had a lead in the fourth quarter and lost the game 114-102. 

Bey had 23 points and Murray had 20. No other Hawk had more than 15. Johnson had one of his more disappointing games of the year, scoring only seven points on 3-12 shooting. 

Atlanta had 12 turnovers compared to Brooklyn's 11, but the big difference was that the Nets scored 18 points off those turnovers while the Hawks only had seven. 

Mikal Bridges has had big performances vs the Hawks this year and had another today. He scored 38 points on 14-26 shooting. 

With this loss, Brooklyn is now only two games behind the Hawks for 10th place in the Eastern Conference and now holds the tiebreaker over Atlanta. This was a disappointing two-game stretch for the Hawks and one that left their grip on the last spot in the NBA play-in Tournament not as tight as before these two games. 

Now, the Hawks have a game on Tuesday vs the New York Knicks. If the Hawks were able to win the last two games, this race for the 10th spot would likely be over. Now, the Hawks are 26-34 and the race between them and Brooklyn will be one to watch.