Hawks dig early hole, unable to complete comeback in 114-105 loss to Bucks

The Atlanta Hawks hosted the Milwaukee Bucks at State Farm Arena on Wednesday night, looking for a win on their home floor before heading back out on the road this weekend. The Hawks were unable to get the win in this one after falling down big early, losing 114-105 to the Bucks.

The Bucks jumped all over Atlanta out of the gates in this one, scoring 39 points and making nine three-pointers in the opening quarter. Milwaukee led by 20 points heading to the second quarter as they seemingly took control of the game in the first half with dominant play on both ends of the court.

The Bucks held the Hawks without a three-point make in the first quarter, as Atlanta scored just 19 points in the opening 12 minutes. The hosts would not make a real push until the third quarter, when they finally got hot from behind the arc and cut the deficit to single digits at 89-80 on this powerful and-one slam by Jalen Johnson.

Atlanta scored 36 points in the third quarter after having just 46 in the first half. The Hawks cut what was once a 24-point Milwaukee lead early in the third to 89-82 heading to the fourth quarter. Bogdan Bogdanovic was huge during the surge, totaling 20 points and four assists off the bench leading into the final frame.

Frank Kaminsky opened the fourth quarter scoring with a three to make it a four-point game, but the Bucks responded with a three of their own. Kaminsky hit another three, his third of the game, in the ensuing moments to move the score back to 92-88.

Johnson hit a pair of free throws to cut the Milwaukee lead to just one at 95-94 lead at the 8:44 mark, trimming the lead that was once 76-52 to almost nothing. The Hawks finally tied the game at 101 with 3:55 remaining when John Collins got a steal and took it all the way for the layup on the break.

Nate McMillan called a timeout for Atlanta with 3:19 remaining, score still tied at 101. Bogdanovic gave the Hawks the lead with a jumper out of the timeout, giving the home team their first lead of the game. The lead would not last long however as the Bucks found Brook Lopez for a three-pointer to retake the lead on the next possession.

Milwaukee kept scoring and playing defense from there, using a 10-0 run to take a 111-103 lead with under 1:30 to play. The Hawks were unable to mount a comeback from there, falling in defeat. Bogdanovic led all Atlanta scorers with 22 points off the bench, while De’Andre Hunter added 16 points and nine rebounds.

Jrue Holiday led the Bucks with 27 points, while Brook Lopez had 20 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Atlanta actually held Giannis Antetokounmpo to just seven points, but he did have 17 boards and ten assists in the victory.

The Hawks will be back in action on the road vs. the Indiana Pacers on Friday night.

Stay tuned.