Hawks vs Celtics final score: Atlanta's defensive struggles continue in 115-104 loss

The Atlanta Hawks got big offensive games from Jeff Teague and DeMarre Carroll but were unable to come up with key stops at crunch time in a 115-104 loss to the Boston Celtics.

Atlanta jumped out of the gate quickly and led 21-6 after a three-pointer from Kyle Korver with 5:32 remaining. Boston closed the quarter with a 19-6 run to cut the Hawks lead to just 27-25 by quarters in. The Celtics surged ahead in the second and took a two point lead into halftime.

Shelvin Mack split a pair of free throws that brought the Hawks to within one at 92-91 with 6:43 remaining. Boston responded with an 11-3 run to push the lead to 103-94. The Celtics made 55 percent of their field goals in the fourth including 2-3 from downtown. Boston was just 1-8 from three-point range in the first half but knocked down 7-14 in the third and fourth quarters. All five of Jerryd Bayless' made threes came in the second half.

Atlanta put up another solid offensive performance. They lose despite making half of their field goal attempts in the game. Teague led the way with 26 points while Carroll added 24. Kyle Korver made 4-5 from deep and finished with 17. Elton Brand logged 34 more minutes and finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and five blocks.

Boston beat Atlanta up on the boards 46-29. Of those 46, 14 came on the offensive end of the floor. The Celtics finished with an 18-8 edge in second chance points and out rebounded the Hawks 14-1 in the fourth quarter.

Atlanta's offense appears to be getting back on track but until they get some big bodies back healthy in the frontcourt, they appear to be dead in the water. Wednesday's loss was Atlanta's 10th in 11 games. Atlanta will regroup with three off days and hopefully get some people healthy before beginning a five-game swing out west beginning on Sunday in Phoenix.