Hawks sweep Pacers in two-game home series

1. The Pacers briefly took the lead with 7:06 to play in the fourth quarter, but the Hawks remained poised, especially in the clutch.

“I think the best player we had tonight in the clutch was Onyeka,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “He got every rebound. He made every play. And sometimes those plays aren’t as noticeable as someone who makes a bucket.”

The 24-year-old center had five offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter, one of which netted the Hawks three free throws from Young. With 5:38 to play, Okongwu corralled a missed 3-pointer from Dyson Daniels then kicked it out to Trae Young at the top of key. Aaron Nesmith picked up Young defensively and the Hawks guard drew the foul going up for the shot.

Okongwu has averaged a career-high 2.9 offensive rebounds per game this season and he has shot 75% on his putbacks so far this season.

“I’m always trying to crash the glass, trying to keep the plays alive, get as many looks as possible and I’m glad I was able to do a little bit of that tonight,” said Okongwu, who had 16 points, 16 rebounds, two assists, three steals and three blocks.

2. LeVert provided yet another strong performance in clutch time with a pair of layups that gave the Hawks the lead for the rest of the game. With 4:41 to play, LeVert leaked out to create a two-on-one and Young found him for running layup.

A little over a minute later, LeVert converted an alley-oop from Young, with a layup at the rim.

“I don’t know,” LeVert said. “I think ever since I was a kid, honestly, I’ve always kind of found myself in those moments, and kind of just never really been scared of them.”

LeVert has scored 20-or-more points in four of his last five games and has averaged 16.8 points per game since the trade deadline.

3. The Hawks narrowly missed closing out Saturday’s game without Young, who began the night efficiently on perfect 6-of-6 overall shooting through his 11 minutes. The Pacers eventually upped the pressure on Young but he ended the first half with 24 points.

But with the Pacers picking up Young full court, the physicality reached a boiling point in the third. As Young tried to go across half court, Quenton Jackson bumped his knee on the side of the Hawks guard’s thigh and forced a turnover. Young stayed down for several minutes before heading to the locker room.

He returned early in the fourth and played the rest of the game.

“We did so many stretches in the back, just so many different movements to see how it felt,” Young said. “And if I wanted to go out there, give it a try and give it a go.”

4. Dyson Daniels continued his defensive reign of terror on the perimeter and capitalized on the disruptive wingspan of his teammates. Daniels had five steals, his 12th game this season with five-or-more steals.

5. With a second-straight win, the Hawks moved up once again in the standings to jump the Heat and Magic for the seventh seed. The Hawks are technically tied with the Heat, with both teams sitting 5.5 games behind the Pistons for the sixth seed.

Stat to know

10-7: Hawks’ record vs. the top 5 seeds in the East. They have two wins each against the Cavaliers, Celtics, Knicks, Bucks and Pacers.

Quotable

“How do I feel? I don’t care about that. I feel like I’m big enough to do what I do out there at a, you know, productive rate. So the naysayers can, you know, keep on saying what they want. But you know, I’m content with my size.” -- Okongwu on the criticism on his size as starting center.

Up Next

The Hawks host the 76ers, who will be without Joel Embiid, Monday night at State Farm Arena.