Clearly these Wizards don’t mind the travel. Behind Bradley Beal’s 28 points and John Wall’s 18-point, 13-assist, seven-rebound effort Washington was able to knock off No. 1 seed Atlanta 104-98 to take a 1-0 series lead. The victory marked the fourth straight time that the Wizards have won the first game of a playoff series on the road.
Wizards vs. Hawks 2015 results: Bradley Beal’s 28 points leads Washington to Game 1 win
The Wizards, behind a second half surge, were able to steal Game 1 on the road.
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Early on, though, it didn't look like Washington was going to continue its streak. The Hawks came out looking like the team that ran through the league and to the top of the standings earlier in the year. The ball moved quickly and from side to side. Players had room to shoot and took advantage. Atlanta hit 52 percent of its shots in the first half and connected on nine of its 17 three-point attempts. 19 of the team's 24 first-half field goals were created by assists.
The Wizards, on the other hand, couldn't figure anything out, bobbling passes and missing open cutters. The Hawks led at the half 62-53.
Then the second half started and both the Wizards and Hawks looked like different teams. Atlanta was no longer allowed to do whatever it wanted on the offensive end of the court. Suddenly easy shots were hard to find and everything looked stagnant. Also, Washington started creating better looks for itself and knocking them down, especially Bradley Beal, for whom the Hawks had no answer all game.
An 8-2 Wizards run to open the quarter cut Atlanta’s lead to four. The Hawks responded with a 7-0 run of their own, but Washington refused to back down. Entering the fourth quarter the Wizards trailed by two.
About two minutes into the game's final quarter Beal hit a long jump shot from the left wing, giving him 28 points, a career playoff high, and the Wizards an 85-83 lead. But just minutes later, after attempting a jump shot from the foul line, the Wizards shooting guard landed on the foot of Al Horford. He immediately collapsed onto the court and grabbed his right ankle. He was the third starting guard in the game to go down. Both John Wall and Jeff Teague had hurt themselves earlier, on separate plays, but neither had been forced out of the game. Beal, however, was not so lucky. He had to leave the game and the TV cameras caught him crying as he walked back to the Wizards' locker room. He returned to the court five minutes later, but was not moving well.
In Beal's absence the Wizards turned to Wall and Paul Pierce, both of whom carried the Wizards until Beal returned to the court five minutes later. Pierce finished the game with 19 points.
DeMarre Carroll led the the Hawks with 24, while Al Horford added in 17 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists. But most of their points came in the first half. The Hawks scored just 35 points in the game's final two quarters. It was enough to keep them in the game, but not enough to win. In one possession with less than two minutes left the Hawks missed six field goal attempts. Some were at the rim, some were from deep. It didn't matter -- none went through the basket. The effort was there, the execution was not.
That’s how it went for Atlanta in the second half. That is why, despite opening the series at home, the Hawks now find themselves down 1-0.
3 things we learned
The Hawks have a scoring problem
We saw it against the Nets and we saw it again Sunday against the Wizards. Remember, this is a team that was sixth in the NBA in offensive rating this season. At times during the playoffs we've seen glimpses of that efficient Spurs-like scoring machine -- the one where the ball pings around the court and makes defenders dizzy. But glimpses are all we've gotten. Game 1 was a perfect example. In the first half Atlanta moved the ball well and shot it well. It the second half it did neither and shot just 25 percent. Whether this was the result of some sort of Washington adjustment, or an issue that the Hawks created for themselves, is unclear. What is is that if Atlanta plans on advancing further in the playoffs it's going to have to get its offense figured out.
In Game 1 John Wall and Bradley Beal combined to score 46 points. Both players grabbed seven rebounds, too. The Hawks’ starting backcourt of Jeff Teague and Kyrle Korver missed 20 of the 29 shots they took and combined to score just 25 points. That’s what we call losing a matchup. It’s OK if Teague and Korver get outplayed a bit this series; Washington has one of the best backcourts in the league and that’s not where Atlanta’s advantage lies -- that’s in the front court. But if the Hawks plan on bouncing back this series they’re going to need to get more from their guards. They’re the ones who make the offense go.
The Wizards have a major bench advantage
The Hawks got 18 points from their bench in Game 1. The Wizards got 12 from Dew Gooden alone, along with 10 from Otto Porter and five from Kevin Seraphin. On paper that might not seem like much of a difference, but when watching the game the difference was apparent. Not only was Washington able to survive with its reserves in the game, but it was able to thrive. Otto Porter hit some huge shots down the stretch. Drew Gooden, suddenly a long range sniper, connected on two of his three three-point attempts. He also played some great defense and was on the court during the Wizards' third quarter run. The Hawks, meanwhile, seemed to bleed points every time it went to guys like Kent Bazemore and Mike Scott. In a best-of-seven series between two seemingly evenly matched teams, depth could end up playing a major role. And right now it seems like the advantage there lies with the Wizards.
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