|
 Teague scored 24 points, Paul Millsap added 18 and the Atlanta Hawks
rallied out of a double-digit deficit to beat the Utah Jazz 91-84 on
Tuesday.
"I thought Jeff made the plays in the fourth quarter, got to the
basket," Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. "I thought Jeff was
very good everywhere tonight."
On top of that, the Hawks defense stifled the Jazz into shooting 35
percent and into committing 20 turnovers. Atlanta, which shot 48
percent from the field, improved to 36-28 with its fifth win in six
games.
Teague played like an All-Star, hitting 9 of 17 shots and dished out
six assists with three rebounds and two steals. Paul Millsap made
his old team pay, making eight of 12 shots with nine rebounds and
three steals, and Al Horford chipped in with 11 points.
Gordon Hayward led the Jazz with 22 points and six rebounds, while
Derrick Favors and Rodney Hood each contributed 16 points.
This was a disappointing performance for Utah, which hoped to build
some momentum after ending a rough four-game road trip off with a
win Saturday at New Orleans.
"Atlanta's really quick and they did a good job hawking the ball, no
pun intended," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. "(Dennis) Schroder,
Teague, (Kent) Bazemore, (Thabo) Sefolosha, I thought all those guys
had good activity and their bigs are the same way."
The Jazz, who've lost nine of 12 games, fell to 29-34 and are now
two full games behind Houston for the final playoff spot in the
Western Conference.
This game included an all-too-familiar scenario for the Jazz. It was
the fifth straight game in which Utah has built and blown a
double-digit lead.
"I think just tough, tough, tough night for us," Hayward said.
"Offensively, we struggled. We got some good looks. We just did not
knock them down and when you can't put the ball in the basket it
really makes it tough on you. I think that was just the story of the
game tonight."
The Hawks trailed by 13 points in the first half but controlled the
game from the middle of the second quarter until the final buzzer.
Atlanta took its biggest lead at 72-60 when Kyle Korver nailed a
jumper.
Utah made one final push, pulling within 80-77 on a Hayward bucket
with 3:40 remaining.
It was all Atlanta after that.
Teague scored a couple of key late baskets and Millsap put the Hawks
up by 10 late with a layup.
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Millsap said "not panicking" was critical for the Hawks' success.
"We've had troubles before this winning streak of finishing games,"
he said, "and I think Jeff Teague did a great job of establishing
the fourth quarter, and sticking to what we do in our defense is
definitely our staple."
Utah came out strong, taking a 27-16 lead after the first quarter.
That advantage, which got as large as 13, dissipated in the second
quarter as Atlanta went on a 17-3 run.
The Jazz have the unenviable task of traveling to Golden State on
Wednesday for the second end of a back-to-back.
The Hawks travel to Toronto to finish off their five-game road trip
Thursday night.
NOTES: G Shelvin Mack was looking forward to facing his former
teammate, G Jeff Teague, in his first game against Atlanta since the
Hawks traded him to Utah as part of a three-team deal last month.
Mack said Teague liked to tease him about the last time they faced
each other when the now-Jazz player was with the Wizards. "He always
brings up him chasing me down and giving me a block," Mack said.
"Hopefully, I can repay that (Tuesday)." ... Hawks coach Mike
Budenholzer on Mack, who played part of three seasons for Atlanta.
"He's just such a high-level basketball IQ guy," Budenholzer said.
"I was joking, I think he knows our offense better than I do. " ...
This game marked the Utah return for Hawks PF Paul Millsap, SG Kyle
Korver and PF Kris Humphries, who all previously played for the
Jazz. Korver shot an NBA-record 53.6 percent from 3-point range his
last season in Utah. ... Jazz coach Quin Snyder was an assistant
under Budenholzer during the 2013-14 season.
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