Third Quarter
No one came out of the half looking sharp — the teams combined to start it 2-of-10 from the floor with four turnovers to boot. It was nearly four and a half minutes before the Sixers got a jumpshot to fall.
Grimes and Dowtin did eventually knock down some threes that helped. Grimes continues to demonstrate good pace and body control scoring off the dribble as well. On the other end though the Hawks made four of their first five threes of the half.
While not quite at that rate, the Hawks continued to drill threes to extend their lead. Walker just did not look as comfortable as he did the night prior — he hesitated on a midrange attempt and couldn’t get it off before the buzzer sounded. The Sixers trailed by seven after three.
Fourth Quarter
Jared Butler got the start tonight. He had another solid night from deep, making his third three of the night early in the quarter. As more of a table setter, he seems to look for lobs for Bona more often — notching his fifth and sixth assist in this stretch.
That was hardly enough for the hole the Sixers had found themselves in. Even after ripping off an 11-2 run they were still trailing by double digits. Grimes persisted though, on top of his driving success he found his three-ball in the second half.
These games grinding to a complete halt at the end has made for a less-than-enjoyable viewing experience. At least the Sixers won both their challenges tonight. After a Bona foul was changed to a block, they finally got it to single digits off a Council floater. By the time they had it down to seven though it was already time to foul the Hawks.
Council took advantage of Niang splitting a pair, quickly driving for an and-1. He even got a mulligan at his missed free throw thanks to a lane violation. Grimes nearly came up with a steal that would have really made things interesting but the comeback died there. Ground was gained the other way though thanks to wins from the Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets.
The next matchup will be one of the most important games of the season, as everyone expected. The Sixers head north to take on the Raptors Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET in a battle for the league’s fifth worst record.
It’s hard to believe there’s still over a month of this season to go.
Despite a late comeback, the Sixers dropped their second leg of a back-to-back 132-123 the Atlanta Hawks Monday night. They are 22-42.
Quentin Grimes continued to help his future outlook though, he once again led all scorers with 35 points along with seven rebounds and six assists.
Ricky Council IV finished with 19 points after a big second half, and Jeff Dowtin Jr. finished with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Dyson Daniels led the Hawks with 25.
Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, Kelly Oubre Jr., Andre Drummond and Trae Young were all out due to injury.
Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.
First Quarter
The signs of a back-to-back were apparent early — that or it was drafty in the State Farm Arena. Despite a couple of airballs Grimes had another solid start attacking the rim. Lonnie Walker IV showed a little bit of playmaking with three assists in the first.
He didn’t have quite the immediate impact on defense, but Adem Bona once again injected energy upon checking into the game. He’s just a fun player to see catch lobs, and he appears to be figuring out how to better those opportunities.
There wasn’t much defense to speak of as both teams shot over 50% in the quarter. The Hawks scored 12 of their first 18 points in the paint. Another old friend Georges Niang hit a midrange jumper to put them up by two as the frame ended.
A sidenote: because this is the first time the Sixers have played the Hawks so far and they’re already done with the Cavs, Niang could end up playing Philadelphia six times in the regular season.
Second Quarter
After conceding a couple of layups, the Hawks ripped off a 9-0 run that gave them a bit of breathing room for the first time. Amidst that, Guerschon Yabusele checked out of the game and went back to the locker room, though he would return later in the quarter.
As if Atlanta’s wings slashing through the Sixers’ undersized backcourt wasn’t enough, Onyeka Okongwu made his first two threes of the night. For context he came into the game making 27.5% of the 1.6 threes he takes per game.
Yabu was hustling hard for second chance points, but the positives were few and far between to close the half. Council was able to poke away a steal and get it ahead to Justin Edwards, somehow making it just a nine-point game at the break.
Another exceptional performance from Quentin Grimes as he put up 35 points in the loss to the Hawks.
Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images
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