Hawks fall to 76ers in second game of In-Season Tournament, 126-116

The Atlanta Hawks fell to the Philadelphia 76ers in their second game of the In-Season Tournament by a final score of 126-116. The Hawks’ starting lineup featured Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, De’Andre Hunter, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela. The 76ers countered with De’Anthony Melton, Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, Robert Covington, and Joel Embiid.

Philadelphia took an early 15-12 lead in the first quarter. However, the Hawks electrified the crowd with dunks from Jalen Johnson, and Trae Young’s spectacular move left De’Anthony Melton on the floor before he sank a three-pointer.

After a hard-fought first quarter, the Atlanta Hawks found themselves trailing the Philadelphia 76ers by a margin of 28-24. Joel Embiid showcased his offensive prowess, contributing 11 points alongside four assists. Meanwhile, the Hawks’ starting lineup combined for 21 points, with Bogdanovic providing the lone bucket off the bench. The first quarter bench unit was comprised of Bogdanovic, Bey, Matthews, and Okongwu.

Onyeka Okongwu started the second quarter with his third three-pointer of the season.

The three-pointer sparked what would become a 10-0 run to start the quarter for the Hawks. Tyrese Maxey, who was scoreless through the first quarter, scored six points early in the second. After a string of threes fell for the 76ers, they were back on top 42-41 with just over five minutes remaining in the half.

The Hawks outscored the 76ers 32-27 in the second quarter, trailing 57-56 entering the half. Jalen Johnson led the way with 10 points, while seven other Hawks scored multiple field goals in a balanced half. Trae Young, as he usually does, had a game-high seven assists. On the other side, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris combined for 38 points. The Hawks gave up 16 second-chance points on the seven offensive rebounds they allowed. However, the Hawks ran the fast break well, scoring 19 points in transition.

Early in the third quarter, De’Andre Hunter was very animated over a foul call on him while he was on the floor. He garnered back to back technical fouls and was subsequently ejected from the game.

Inserted for Hunter was Jalen Johnson, who went on to have an impactful quarter on both ends. After a bad series of defensive possessions, the Hawks saw themselves in an eight point hole. After a back and forth quarter, Trae Young hit a three from incredible distance to cut the lead to five. Shortly after the 76ers extended the lead back to seven. The Hawks were outscored 37-31 in the quarter.

Philadelphia opened up the fourth quarter on a 15-8 run, extending their lead out to 14 points without Joel Embiid on the floor. The Hawks struggled both offensively and defensively as the 76ers handled them nearly all quarter. There was no flash of a comeback this time around for the Hawks.

Trae Young ended with 22 points and 13 assists, as well as a team-high 12 in the plus-minus column. In fact, Jalen Johnson was the only other player positive in that category. Johnson finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Capela, Murray, Bogdanovic, and Bey were the others to see double figures in the scoring column.

This loss brings our Atlanta Hawks to 6-6 on the season, as well as 1-1 in the In-Season Tournament.