Game ID: 22301034
Boston Celtics @ Atlanta Hawks
Monday, March 25, 2024 at 7:30 PM ET
State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
ATL 22 34 34 30 120BOS 44 30 22 22 118
ATL vs BOS ScoutingATL vs BOS Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
ATL availability going into 3/17 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 10 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Okongwu missed 12 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 62 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 6 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Johnson back 3/15 after 3, 35 min since (103% of 34)
BACK Krejčí back 3/06 after 6, 22 min since (88% of 25)
BACK Windler back 3/13 after 4, 5 min since (39% of 12)
BACK Matthews back 3/08 after 3, 10 min since (86% of 12)
NEW Fernando 15 to 21 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 3/18 · back-to-backOUT Young missed 11 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Okongwu missed 13 since 2/14, returns tonight: 19 min (73% of 26)
OUT Windler missed 2 since 3/15, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 63 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 7 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Johnson back 3/15 after 3, 35 min since (105% of 34)
BACK Matthews back 3/08 after 3, 11 min since (92% of 12)
NEW Fernando 15 to 21 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 3/21 · 2 days' restOUT Young missed 12 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Windler missed 3 since 3/15, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 64 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 8 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Johnson back 3/15 after 3, 34 min since (102% of 34)
BACK Okongwu back 3/18 after 13, 19 min since (73% of 26)
ATL availability going into 3/23 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 13 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Windler missed 4 since 3/15, returns tonight: 19 min (157% of 12)
OUT Gueye missed 65 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 9 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Johnson back 3/15 after 3, 34 min since (102% of 34)
BACK Okongwu back 3/18 after 13, 19 min since (74% of 26)
ATL availability going into 3/25 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 14 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Johnson missed 2 since 3/21, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 66 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 10 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Okongwu back 3/18 after 13, 19 min since (74% of 26)
BACK Windler back 3/23 after 4, 19 min since (157% of 12)
NEW Mathews 15 to 20 min over the last 5
NEW Forrest 11 to 17 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 3/27 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 15 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Johnson missed 3 since 3/21, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 67 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 11 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Okongwu back 3/18 after 13, 19 min since (74% of 26)
BACK Windler back 3/23 after 4, 10 min since (86% of 12)
NEW Krejčí 25 to 30 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 3/28 · back-to-backOUT Young missed 16 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Johnson missed 4 since 3/21, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 68 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 12 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Okongwu back 3/18 after 13, 19 min since (74% of 26)
BACK Windler back 3/23 after 4, 13 min since (104% of 12)
NEW Krejčí 25 to 32 min over the last 5
NEW Mathews 15 to 22 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 3/30 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 17 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Johnson missed 5 since 3/21, out tonight
OUT Gueye missed 69 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 13 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Windler back 3/23 after 4, 13 min since (104% of 12)
NEW Bogdanović 30 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Krejčí 25 to 34 min over the last 5
NEW Mathews 15 to 21 min over the last 5
NEW Matthews 12 to 17 min over the last 4
ATL availability going into 4/01 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 18 since 2/25, out tonight
OUT Johnson missed 6 since 3/21, returns tonight: 25 min (74% of 34)
OUT Gueye missed 70 since 11/01, out tonight
OUT Bufkin missed 14 since 3/05, returns tonight: 17 min (150% of 12)
BACK Windler back 3/23 after 4, 10 min since (86% of 12)
NEW Bogdanović 30 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Krejčí 25 to 33 min over the last 5
NEW Fernando 15 to 21 min over the last 5
NEW Mathews 15 to 20 min over the last 5
NEW Matthews 12 to 18 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 3/18 · back-to-backOUT Porziņģis missed 5 since 3/09, returns tonight: 22 min (74% of 29)
BACK Tillman back 3/12 after 2, 20 min since (160% of 12)
BACK Queta back 3/11 after 8, 5 min since (46% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 3/11 after 3, 17 min since (162% of 10)
NEW Hauser 21 to 26 min over the last 5
NEW Kornet 15 to 20 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/20 · 1 day's restBACK Porziņģis back 3/18 after 5, 22 min since (74% of 29)
BACK Tillman back 3/12 after 2, 19 min since (156% of 12)
BACK Queta back 3/11 after 8, 5 min since (46% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 3/11 after 3, 17 min since (165% of 10)
NEW Pritchard 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Hauser 21 to 28 min over the last 4
NEW Kornet 15 to 22 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/22 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 3/18, out tonight
OUT Hauser missed 2 since 3/18, returns tonight: 24 min (116% of 21)
OUT Queta missed 2 since 3/18, returns tonight: 3 min (25% of 11)
BACK Porziņģis back 3/18 after 5, 25 min since (85% of 29)
BACK Tillman back 3/12 after 2, 18 min since (148% of 12)
NEW Pritchard 22 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Brissett 10 to 17 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 3/23 · back-to-backOUT Holiday missed 3 since 3/18, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 3/18 after 5, 25 min since (87% of 29)
BACK Hauser back 3/22 after 2, 24 min since (116% of 21)
BACK Queta back 3/17 after 2, 6 min since (50% of 11)
NEW Pritchard 22 to 32 min over the last 5
NEW Brissett 10 to 18 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 3/25 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 4 since 3/18, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 3/18 after 5, 25 min since (87% of 29)
BACK Hauser back 3/22 after 2, 28 min since (136% of 21)
BACK Queta back 3/17 after 2, 6 min since (50% of 11)
NEW Pritchard 22 to 35 min over the last 5
NEW Kornet 15 to 21 min over the last 5
NEW Brissett 10 to 21 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 3/28 · 2 days' restOUT Holiday missed 5 since 3/18, returns tonight: 36 min (108% of 34)
OUT Queta missed 2 since 3/23, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 3/18 after 5, 27 min since (94% of 29)
BACK Hauser back 3/22 after 2, 28 min since (134% of 21)
NEW Horford 28 to 35 min over the last 3
NEW Pritchard 22 to 34 min over the last 5
NEW Brissett 10 to 16 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 3/30 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 3 since 3/23, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 3/28 after 5, 36 min since (108% of 34)
BACK Hauser back 3/22 after 2, 26 min since (128% of 21)
NEW Horford 28 to 35 min over the last 3
NEW Pritchard 22 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Brissett 10 to 16 min over the last 3
BOS availability going into 4/01 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 4 since 3/23, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 2 since 3/28, returns tonight: 13 min (126% of 10)
BACK Holiday back 3/28 after 5, 36 min since (106% of 34)
BACK Hauser back 3/22 after 2, 24 min since (115% of 21)
NEW Pritchard 22 to 27 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 4/03 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 5 since 3/23, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 3/28 after 5, 34 min since (100% of 34)
BACK Brissett back 4/01 after 2, 13 min since (126% of 10)
NEW Porziņģis 29 to 34 min over the last 4
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 19 free throws a game; Murray at 25 and Johnson at 23 a game. Without Young (14 straight), Johnson (2 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 106, shooting 49 percent and 44 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 28 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Holiday (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to Atlanta's 114 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-1. Call it Boston 119, Atlanta 114.
3/17 @ LAC 110-93 — ATL notes
ATL won 110-93. ATL shot 49% (41 of 84) to LAC's 38%, 17 of 34 from three, and got to the line 12 times to LAC's 29. Murray led with 21 (7 of 14, 5 of 10 from three); Hunter added 20, Johnson 18. The hinge was Q2, 30-15: a lead of 2 became 17, and the lead reached 29. Capela was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
3/18 @ LAL 105-136 — ATL notes
ATL lost 105-136. ATL took 8 more shots (98 to 90), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 43% to LAL's 58%, 9 of 41 from three. Johnson led with 25 (9 of 20, 2 of 11 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Bogdanović added 17, Murray 13. Q2 was theirs, 31-35, but the other 3 periods went 101-74 against them. Murray's -25 in 31 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/21 @ PHX 115-128 — ATL notes
ATL lost 115-128. ATL took 17 more shots (91 to 74), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 44% to PHX's 55%, 12 of 35 from three. ATL turned it over 8 times to PHX's 17. Murray led with 29 (11 of 26, 3 of 10 from three); Hunter added 22, Bogdanović 16. Q1 was theirs, 37-30, but the other 3 periods went 98-78 against them. They led by as many as 14. Okongwu's -19 in 19 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/23 vs CHA 132-91 — ATL notes
ATL won 132-91. ATL shot 56% (50 of 90) to CHA's 42%, 20 of 42 from three. ATL turned it over 8 times to CHA's 13. Murray led with 28 (10 of 14, 7 of 9 from three); Fernando added 25, Mathews 20. The hinge was Q2, 36-20: a lead of 2 became 18, and the lead reached 41. Mathews was the night's best plus/minus at +31.
3/25 vs BOS 120-118 — ATL notes
ATL won 120-118. ATL shot 53% (46 of 87) to BOS's 49%, 18 of 36 from three. ATL turned it over 13 times to BOS's 7. Hunter led with 24 (8 of 14, 4 of 8 from three); Bogdanović added 22, Murray 19. The hinge was Q3, 34-22: the deficit went from 18 to 6. ATL trailed 56-74 at the half and won the second half 64-44.
3/27 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 113, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Murray at 22 and Hunter at 17 a game. Without Young (15 straight), Johnson (3 straight). One day's rest. Portland comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 115, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Henderson at 19 and Banton at 16 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Simons (2 straight), Sharpe (35 straight), Ayton (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Atlanta wins, and the game turns on the arc, Atlanta at 40 percent from three to Portland's 33 and the turnovers, Portland giving it away 14 times a game to Atlanta's 10. Call it Atlanta 118, Portland 110.
3/28 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Murray at 24 and Bogdanović at 17 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Young (16 straight), Johnson (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 21 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 27 a game. Without Holiday (5 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to Atlanta's 116. Call it Boston 119, Atlanta 115, Atlanta keeping it close.
3/30 vs MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 18 free throws a game; Murray at 30 and Hunter at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Young (17 straight), Johnson (5 straight). One day's rest. Milwaukee comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 112, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 16 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 29 and Lillard at 24 a game. One day's rest.
So: Atlanta wins, and the game turns on the arc, Atlanta at 41 percent from three to Milwaukee's 36 and the glass, where Atlanta has been plus-5 a night and Milwaukee plus-1. Call it Atlanta 119, Milwaukee 116, Milwaukee keeping it close.
4/01 @ CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 20 free throws a game; DeRozan at 28 and White at 17 a game. Second night of a back-to-back. Atlanta comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 112, shooting 51 percent and 42 from three, 16 free throws a game; Murray at 28 and Bogdanović at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Young (18 straight), Johnson (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: Chicago wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Atlanta has been plus-5 a night and Chicago plus-1. Call it Chicago 116, Atlanta 115, Atlanta keeping it close.
3/18 vs DET 119-94 — BOS notes
BOS won 119-94. BOS shot 45% (43 of 95) to DET's 43%, 22 of 49 from three. The glass went 53-43 for them. Brown led with 31 (11 of 20, 3 of 6 from three, 6 of 8 at the line); Pritchard added 23, White 22. The hinge was Q3, 33-20: a lead of 13 became 26, and the lead reached 29. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
3/20 vs MIL 122-119 — BOS notes
BOS won 122-119. BOS shot 47% (40 of 85) to MIL's 54%, 18 of 40 from three, and went to the line 29 times to MIL's 14 — 24 points from the stripe to their 12. BOS turned it over 9 times to MIL's 14. Tatum led with 31 (9 of 19, 4 of 7 from three, 9 of 10 at the line); White added 23, Brown 21. The hinge was Q2, 36-28: a lead of 5 became 13, and the lead reached 21. Horford was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
3/22 @ DET 129-102 — BOS notes
BOS won 129-102. BOS shot 53% (47 of 89) to DET's 51%, 16 of 45 from three, and went to the line 27 times to DET's 13 — 19 points from the stripe to their 9. BOS turned it over 7 times to DET's 18. Brown led with 33 (13 of 19, 3 of 8 from three, 4 of 7 at the line); Pritchard added 20, White 19. The hinge was Q2, 37-19: BOS came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 16, and the lead reached 27. White was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
3/23 @ CHI 124-113 — BOS notes
BOS won 124-113. BOS shot 51% (44 of 86) to CHI's 57%, 21 of 48 from three, and went to the line 17 times to CHI's 11 — 15 points from the stripe to their 10. BOS turned it over 12 times to CHI's 7. The glass went 41-29 for them. Tatum led with 26 (8 of 20, 2 of 7 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Hauser added 23, Horford 23. The hinge was Q4, 29-21: a lead of 3 became 11. Pritchard was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
3/25 @ ATL 118-120 — BOS notes
BOS lost 118-120. BOS took 8 more shots (95 to 87), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 49% to ATL's 53%, 11 of 38 from three. BOS turned it over 7 times to ATL's 13. Tatum led with 37 (13 of 26, 2 of 7 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Brown added 24, Porziņģis 17. Q1 was theirs, 44-22, but the other 3 periods went 98-74 against them. They led by as many as 30. Porziņģis's -7 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/28 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Murray at 24 and Bogdanović at 17 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Young (16 straight), Johnson (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 21 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 27 a game. Without Holiday (5 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to Atlanta's 116. Call it Boston 119, Atlanta 115, Atlanta keeping it close.
3/30 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; McCollum at 24 and Williamson at 23 a game. Without Ingram (4 straight), Daniels (21 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 115, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 24 a game. One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the defense, New Orleans allowing 106 a night to Boston's 115. Call it New Orleans 115, Boston 114, Boston keeping it close.
4/01 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 121, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 18 free throws a game; Bridges at 22 and Miller at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 23 a game. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to Charlotte's 121 and the glass, where Boston has been minus-0 a night and Charlotte minus-6. Call it Boston 119, Charlotte 108, Boston by 11.
4/03 vs OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 28 and Brown at 20 a game. One day's rest. OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 114, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Jal. Williams at 24 and Giddey at 21 a game. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Boston 118, OKC 113.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
JB J. Brown
JS J. Springer
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
OB O. Brissett
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
SM S. Mykhailiuk
ATLBB B. Bogdanović
BF B. Fernando
BO Bogdanovic
CC C. Capela
DH D. Hunter
DM D. Murray
GM G. Mathews
KR Krejci
TF T. Forrest
VK V. Krejčí
WM W. Matthews
BOS/ATL the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Hawks rally from 30 points down to stun NBA-leading Celtics 120-118
ATLANTA -- — De’Andre Hunter could’ve held the ball and forced the Celtics to foul.
Instead, he let it fly.
Considering what the Atlanta Hawks had done, rallying from a 30-point deficit against NBA-leading Boston, it was only appropriate the shot hit nothing but net.
Hunter scored 24 points, including a clinching 3-pointer with 9.2 seconds remaining , and the patched-together Hawks pulled off one of the most improbable wins in franchise history with a 120-118 stunner over the Celtics on Monday night.
The Celtics had won 20 of 22 and brought a nine-game winning streak into State Farm Arena — a run that certainly appeared in no jeopardy when Al Horford’s 3-pointer put Boston up 68-38 with just under 4 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
But the Hawks, clinging to the final play-in spot in the East and one of the league’s most disappointing teams, launched a comeback out of nowhere with All-Star guard Trae Young and three other key players sidelined by injuries.
It was the biggest comeback win for Atlanta since at least the 1997-98 season, when the NBA began keeping detailed play-by-play.
Dejounte Murray put the Hawks ahead to stay at 117-116 on a reverse layup with a minute left. Jaylen Brown missed a desperation 3 with the shot clock expiring, and Hunter sealed things at the other end with a huge assist from Clint Capela .
After Murray missed a jumper, Capela grabbed the offensive rebound and spotted Hunter all alone at the top of the key. Even though the shot clock was off and Hunter could’ve forced the Celtics to foul, he let go an open look from 26 feet.
Hunter had run through the scenario before he got the ball.
“If he passes it to me, I’m shooting,” Hunter told himself. "He got the rebound, he passed it to me, so I shot it.”
Hawks coach Quin Snyder had no problem with the seemingly ill-advised decision.
“He didn’t hesitate,” Snyder said. “He shot the ball with confidence, and I had confidence in him.”
It was a shocking loss for the Celtics in a season filled with wins, to a team that came into the night trailing them by 25 1/2 games in the Eastern Conference standings..
“We let our foot off the gas in the second half, and they got in a great rhythm," said Jayson Tatum , who led the Celtics with 37 points. “It's a tough pill to swallow.”
Atlanta's comeback began with a 9-0 run to end the first half, which cut the deficit to 74-56 as the teams headed to the locker room.
The momentum carried over to the third quarter, which began with Atlanta ripping off 19 of the next 23 points to slice the margin to 78-75.
After the Celtics flirted several times with pulling away again, the Hawks finally claimed their first lead of the night when little-used Wesley Matthews knocked down a 3 to make it 97-96 with 9:42 remaining.
Bogdan Bogdanovic had 22 points and Murray chipped in with 19, but it was several players who are normally buried deep on the bench who really carried the Hawks.
Vit Krejci had 16 points, including a 3-pointer that left him shrugging his shoulders toward his teammates as if he couldn't really believe what was happening. Bruno Fernando scored 13 and Matthews knocked down a pair of crucial 3s.
“It felt like everything we were doing was going (right) for us,” Krejci said. “It was a really good moment. We’ve got to find a way to feel that way the whole game.”
With plenty of fans in green cheering them on in Atlanta, the Celtics doubled up the home team in the first quarter by racing to a 44-22 lead.
Boston made 16 of 24 shots in the opening period, including 5 of 7 beyond the 3-point arc, in addition to going 7 of 7 at the foul line.
Tatum finished the half with 23 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and a blocked shot. But he was stymied a bit in the second half by Krejci, who began to pick up the Boston star from one end of the court to the other.
Brown added 24 points for the Celtics.
UP NEXT
Celtics: With a strange quirk of scheduling, Boston will get an extended stay in Atlanta before the same teams meet again on Thursday.
Hawks: Atlanta has another home game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, sandwiched between its two contests against the Celtics.