MANILA – Atlanta Hawks bucked the absence of star Trae Young to post a 110-88 win over the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference finals on Tuesday (Wednesday in the Philippines) at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Hawks went on a breakaway in the third quarter following the exit of Bucks’ star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a hyperextended left knee as the best-of-seven series was now at 2-2.
Atlanta was clinging to a 60-52 advantage in the third quarter when Antetokounmpo left the game after an awkward fall while defending Clint Capela’s dunk. The Hawks then cruised to a 17-scoring blast behind two-pointers by Lou Williams and Kevin Huerter and outside hits by Bogdan Bogdanovic to score 77-54.
The Hawks’ lead ballooned to 87-62 via a three-point shot by Cam Reddish before the Bucks surged to 75-91 on baskets from Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis Jr.
Conversions from Capela, Huerter, and John Collins and back-to-back hits by Skylar Mays stretched Atlanta’s advantage to 110-85.
Williams finished the match with 21 points, eight assists, and five rebounds, while Bogdanovic drilled six triples to tally 20 points to go with five assists, four steals, and three rebounds for the Hawks.
Huerter and Capela contributed 15 markers apiece, while Reddish and Danilo Gallinari recorded 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Hawks.
Atlanta tied the series despite playing without Young, who left the game due to a deep bone bruise on his right foot after accidentally stepping on the referee’s foot in Game 3.
Jrue Holiday led the Bucks with 19 points and nine assists, Middleton added 18 markers, while Antetokounmpo ended up with 14 points before leaving the game.
BOX SCORE:
ATLANTA 110 – Williams 21, Bogdanovic 20, Capela 15, Huerter 15, Reddish 12, Gallinari 10, Okongwu 7, Collins 4, Mays 4, Knight 2, Snell 0, Dunn 0, Fernando 0.
MILWAUKEE 88 – Holiday 19, Middleton 18, G. Antetokounmpo 14, Tucker 8, Lopez 7, Portis 7, Forbes 6, Nwora 4, Connaughton 3, T. Antetokounmpo 2, Bryant 2, Teague 0, Merrill 0, Diakite 0./PN
QUARTERSCORES:
25-22, 51-38, 87-62, 110-88./PN
