Brooklyn Nets started Game 3 against the Atlanta Hawks the same way every other team who lost the first two games on the road in these playoffs did, off to a strong start, but Brooklyn managed to avoid the collapse that followed from everyone else. Thaddeus Young scored 18 points with 11 rebounds and Brook Lopez dropped 22 points and grabbed 13 rebounds of his own to help the Nets win 91-83. The series now stands at 2-1 in favor of the Hawks.
The Hawks overcame a 15-point first-half deficit to take a four-point third quarter lead, but then they seemed to run out of gas. Brooklyn put together an 18-0 run from late in the third until midway through the fourth over a span of more than seven minutes. This huge run proved to be the difference for the Nets as the Hawks couldn’t get much going in particular from one of the Hawks 4 All-Stars this season, Kyle Korver, who shot 1-8 from the field.
Joe Johnson dropped 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Bojan Bogdanovic scored 19 on the day for the Nets. Both teams remarkably shared similar stats with the rebounding, turnover and shooting percentages eerily similar. The issue is, the Hawks play down to Brooklyn’s level, which is exactly what the Nets want.
DeMarre Carroll was the big scorer for the Hawks today dropping 22 points and grabbing 6 rebounds while Paul Millsap scored 18 points and grabbed 17 rebounds of his own. Jeff Teague scored 12 points and handed out 6 assists but he shot 4-13 from the field. The four main rotation guards for the Hawks – Korver, Teague, Dennis Schroder and Kent Bazemore – shot a combined 8-35
Game 4 is Monday night at Barclays Center.
