The Eastern Conference’s playoff picture is stuck in a logjam, but the Atlanta Hawks did their part to loosen things up Saturday night.
The Hawks matched the Boston Celtics blow for blow at Philips Arena and used a strong fourth quarter to pull out a 118-107 win. The victory gave Atlanta sole possession of the East’s No. 3 playoff seed and allowed the Hawks to control their own destiny, as they can clinch the third spot by winning their final two games.
So how was Atlanta able to cool off a Celtics team that had won four in a row and eight of its last 10? Two words: Paul Millsap.
The All-Star big man logged one of his best games of the season, dropping a season-high 31 points along with 16 rebounds, three assists, two steals and five blocks. A 31 percent 3-point shooter entering Saturday, Millsap went 5-of-7 from distance and even banked in a 3-pointer late in the third quarter.
“It’s hard for me to say about Paul Millsap that it’s just his night,” head coach Brad Stevens said in a postgame interview aired on CSN New England. “I mean, he’s an All-Star. So, Paul Millsap does it every night. Does he hit five threes every night? No. But he impacts winning in a big way every night. So, it’s not fair to him to say that, I don’t think.”
Millsap made his presence felt on the defensive end with five blocks, including a swat of Evan Turner with two minutes remaining that helped stymie Boston’s comeback attempt.
The Celtics now have lost three consecutive games to the Hawks, as Atlanta has won the season series 3-1. Boston currently owns a half-game lead over the Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets for the No. 4 seed with two games remaining on their schedule — against the Hornets and Heat, no less.
While the third seed might be out of reach for the Celtics, they still can get home court in the playoffs by winning out. Given how they’ve played against Atlanta of late, the C’s would do well to secure the fourth seed — or at least the fifth seed — to avoid falling to No. 6 and facing the Hawks in the opening round.
“This is a prideful team, it’s a good team,” Stevens said of Atlanta. “As I said before the game, I thought they were playing as well as anyone in the East. They won 60 games (last season), and those are the same guys over there (as) last year. So, you knew they’d get going at some point, and this is a good time to get it going.”
Thumbnail photo via Brett Davis/USA TODAY Sports Images
