Zaccharie Risacher Scores 30, But Atlanta Hawks Drop 7th Straight Game In 137-115 Loss to Cleveland

The Hawks are now 22-26 after their seventh straight loss
Jan 30, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) brings the ball up court in front of forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) and Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) in the first quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images
Jan 30, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) brings the ball up court in front of forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) and Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) in the first quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Hawks were 2-0 this season against the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the Cavs changed that tonight, despite a very good performance from No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher. Atlanta trailed by only eight at halftime, but the Cavs blew it open in the second half and won the game by 22, showing why they should be taken seriously as an NBA Finals contender.

Risacher was perhaps the lone bright spot for the Hawks tonight. He scored 30 points on an efficient 11-14 night shooting from the field and 5-6 from three in 25 minutes. This was his second career 30-point game and his development over this second half of the season will be very important.

De'Andre Hunter came off the bench to score 25 points, but it was a struggle for the rest of the Hawks on offense, especially the bench. Trae Young, fresh off of getting snubbed in the All-Star Game, had 15 points and 10 assists tonight on 5-16 shooting. Onyeka Okongwu had 14 points and seven rebounds.

The Hawks bench was a disaster tonight outside of Hunter. Vit Krejci had six points, Garrison Matthews had six points, Keaton Wallace had two points, and Larry Nance had zero. When four players are combining for 14 points off the bench, it is going to be tough to win games. Atlanta shot 46% from the field and 33% from three tonight.

Atlanta's defense had been playing really well over the past couple, but they had a tough time defending the Cavaliers offense which showed why it is one of the best in the NBA tonight. Cleveland shot nearly 60% from the field and while they did not shoot the ball well from three, the Hawks offense could not make them pay for that. Cleveland had seven players score in double digits, with Darius Garland (26 points), Donovan Mitchell (24 points), and Ty Jerome (20 points) all going over 20 points. The Cavs outplayed the Hawks from close to start to finish tonight and were the much better team.

Up next for the Hawks is a road game in Indiana, who has been one of the best teams in the NBA over the past month. The Hawks record drops to 22-26 and they have now lost seven straight.

Atlanta started Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, Mouhamed Gueye, and Onyeka Okongwu. Cleveland's first five on the floor was Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen.

The Hawks offense has been poor over the past few weeks, but it started off fantastic tonight. Atlanta was 3-5 from three, including two from rookie Zaccharie Risacher. They got out to an early 17-16 lead over Cleveland and while the offense got off to a good start, it was not the same for the defense. The Cavs were 6-9 from the field and 2-2 from three.

The good start on offense went away quickly though. With the game tied 19-19, the Cavs went on a 12-2 run to take a 31-21 lead and the Hawks could not stop the Cavs offense. Cleveland led 39-29 headng into the second quarter and they needed a spark. Garland led the Cavs with 10 points and was shooting 63% from the field.

The Hawks got that spark in the second quarter. It has been an up-and-down rookie season for No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher, but he had the best half of his young NBA career tonight. Risacher went on to score 14 points in the second quarter and 20 in the first half. He kept the Hawks in the game. The offense was still humming in the first half, but for the first time in the past 5-6 games, the Hawks could not get a stop on defense. Risacher's big quarter kept the Hawks in the game and they trailed 71-63 at the half.

Atlanta was shooting 47% from the field and 30% from three in the first half. Risacher had 20 points on 7-7 shooting from the field and De'Andre Hunter had 18.

Cleveland shot 60% from the field and 33% from three in the first half. Garland led the way with 16, Mobley had 14, and Jerome had 11.

Zaccharie Risacher Scores 30, But Atlanta Hawks Drop 7th Straight Game In 137-115 Loss to Cleveland
Jan 30, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) throws a pass between Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome (2) and forward Evan Mobley (4) in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images

Things got away from the Hawks pretty quickly in he second half. The Cavs started the third quarter on a 17-6 run to get the lead up to 88-69. With the score at 90-70, Atlanta did go on a 8-0 run to cut the lead to 12, but that was as close as they got. By the end of the third quarter, the Hawks trailed Cleveland 110-84 after being outscored 39-21 in the third.

The Hawks won the fourth quarter 31-27, but it did not matter. They never made a real run in the game and Quin Snyder pulled his starters with a few minutes left. The Cavaliers won 137-115 and moved to 39-9 and giving the Hawks their seventh straight loss.

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Jackson Caudell
JACKSON CAUDELL

Jackson Caudell has been covering Georgia Tech Athletics For On SI since March 2022 and the Atlanta Hawks for On SI since October 2023. Jackson is also the co-host of the Bleav in Georgia Tech podcast and he loves to bring thoughtful analysis and comprehensive coverage to everything that he does. Find him on X @jacksoncaudell