The Hawks Obliterated The Knicks To Move One Game Away From The Conference Semifinals

The Atlanta Hawks are one game away from moving on to the Eastern Conference semifinals. The team played host to the New York Knicks on Sunday afternoon in Atlanta, and in their most emphatic win yet in the series, the Hawks came out on top, 113-96. With the win, Atlanta finds itself on top in the series, 3-1, as things shift back to New York for Game 5.

While the series has generally been close through three games, the Hawks blew the doors off of the Knicks on Sunday afternoon. Despite keeping it close through two quarters — the Knicks led by a point after one and trailed, 53-49, at the half — Atlanta came out firing on all cylinders in the third quarter. A 10-2 run to start the frame put New York at arm’s distance, and after a John Collins free throw with 4:47 left in the quarter, the Hawks did not relinquish a double-digit lead at any point for the remainder of the game.

It was, as has been the case lately, an offensive masterclass by Trae Young, who has risen to the occasion for four straight games in his first postseason. Young led the Hawks in scoring, going for 27 points despite a relatively inefficient evening (9-for-21 from the field, 4-for-14 from three) while doling out nine assists in 33 minutes of work.

Young was deputized by a pair of 20-point outings — John Collins went for 22 with eight rebounds, while Danilo Gallinari came off the bench for 21 points — and a reliably solid two-way performance by Clint Capela, who scored 10, pulled in 12 boards, and was generally intimidating around the rim. And while he wasn’t as good as we’ve seen when he’s really cooking, Bogdan Bogdanovic stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists, and two steals.

For the Knicks, the problems they’ve shown during this series, particularly on the offensive end, once again reared their ugly head. Julius Randle had his best game, although that speaks more to his first three performances than anything exemplary on Sunday. Randle scored 23 points on 7-for-19 shooting with 10 rebounds, seven assists, and two steals, but still did not impose himself the way we’ve seen during the regular season. Late in the game, in an apparent attempt to light a fire under his teammates, Randle was called for a Flagrant 1 against Gallinari.

R.J. Barrett gave the Knicks 21 points on 8-for-15 shooting with six rebounds, four assists, and two steals, while Derrick Rose had 18 and six assists. But for the most part, New York finds itself searching for answers as it stares down a 3-1 series deficit. The team’s vaunted defense has been shredded by Young and Atlanta’s offensive firepower, and on the other end, the inability to get Randle going — or to turn the three-point line into any sort of great equalizer (they went 9-for-29 on Sunday) — has to change, or else their season will have one game left.

Game 5 between the Hawks and Knicks will take place on Wednesday evening from Madison Square Garden. It is unclear when the game will tip off or where it will appear on television.