For the first time since March 7, the Boston Celtics started the second half of their miniseries against the Atlanta Hawks with their starting lineup intact.
That was meant to result in a triumph. After watching Monday’s 120-118 loss lose a 30-point lead, C’s supporters were hoping for a blowout.
Rather, the hosts scored 40 points in the paint in the opening 24 minutes thanks to little opposition to their drives in the first half. They had sixty in the end.
After the break, Boston did a better job of countering that, but the Hawks’ relentless glass-cracking against a defense that relied heavily on switches made it difficult for the Celtics to keep them off the boards.
They gave up 28 second-chance points and 17 offensive rebounds. With 27 seconds remaining in regulation, De’Andre Hunter made a leap over Derrick White to recover a missed three by Dejounte Murray. He then sent the ball out to an open Bogdan Bogdanovic, who buried a triple to tie the game at 112.
With Jrue Holiday tucked under his shooting arm, Murray pushed up for a shot 21 feet from the basket that splintered through the net, forcing overtime and sending Atlanta to a 123-122 victory. Murray’s unapologetic 44 points on 44 shots prompted OT.
For the visitors, crunch time—which is the last five minutes in games decided by five points—was a mixed bag.
There was a HORNS set, in which two players touched the ball while positioned at their elbows. The Celtics worked inside out, with those without the rock making an effort. Jaylen Brown came close to scoring twice at the rim but chose not to force the shot, and Derrick White made a three.
And in overtime, Brown found himself an open outlet, squared up, and swished a 17-foot shot after the Hawks forced Kristaps Porzingis to snag an entry pass farther from the hoop than he desired and destroyed Boston’s attempt to get the ball to a cutting Jayson Tatum for a layup.
With 6.2 seconds remaining, the C’s led 122-121 as a result. It was the game’s fortyth lead change. Regretfully, that wasn’t the last for them because of Murray’s reply on the other end.
In the final seconds, there were also a few embarrassing moments for the Celtics. The most notable instance of this was when Tatum, with his teammates watching, dribbled the ball out of the air at the conclusion of regulation before Wesley Matthews fouled him with 6.1 seconds left.
He then attempted an unbalanced three-pointer over two defenders, a low-percentage attempt that was off-target.
That’s what those kinds of possessions usually yield when the Celtics need it most. It becomes safer to give the ball to their best player and prevent a turnover by not pressing the matter, but when Tatum settles and everyone else stays motionless, scoring points is rarely the result.
Following the game, Holiday—who has been out of the Boston team’s last five games because of a sprained right AC joint—talked about his return to the starting lineup and the importance of getting more clutch practice.
