Atlanta Hawks, pushed to the brink by Washington Wizards, push back just in time

With their magical season on the brink, the Atlanta Hawks needed someone to come up big.

Al Horford wasn’t supposed to be the guy.

He would not be denied.

The Hawks centre swooped in to snatch an offensive rebound and dropped in a shot from right under the basket with 1.9 seconds remaining, giving top-seeded Atlanta an 82-81 victory over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night and a 3-2 lead in the NBA play-offs second round.

“I wasn’t supposed to be involved in the play at all,” Horford said. “When I saw the ball go up, I just ran in there.”

In a game of back-and-forth runs, the Hawks went more than 7 minutes in the fourth quarter without making a basket, then ripped off 14 straight points to take the lead. Atlanta went cold again, and it looked as though Paul Pierce had doomed Atlanta for the second time in the series. Having already made a buzzer-beating winner in Game 3, he got open in the corner and swished a three-pointer with 8.3 seconds left, putting the Wizards up 81-80.

Pierce taunted the Hawks bench and home crowd on his way back down the court before bowling over John Wall, who was playing for the first time since Game 1 after fracturing several bones in his left hand.

Wall didn’t mind, throwing up his hands in celebration. The Wizards were on the verge of heading home with a chance to wrap up the series.

Atlanta had one more chance.

The Hawks gave the ball to backup point guard Dennis Schroder, who ignited a fourth-quarter rally and stayed in the game at the suggestion of all-star Jeff Teague, who watched the closing minutes from the bench.

Schroder drove down the lane and put up a shot, which was swatted off the backboard by Wall. But Horford yanked the ball away from Nene, who tumbled to the court, leaving the Hawks centre all alone under the basket. Horford, who had 23 points and 11 rebounds, put in the easy shot on a night when both teams struggled offensively.

“A heck of a play by Al,” Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said.

The Wizards threw up a wild shot from halfcourt that didn’t come close as the horn sounded. The sellout crowd nearly stormed the court, held back by security while the Hawks celebrated. Horford screamed and pumped his fists, having put the Hawks one victory away from advancing to the third round of the play-offs for the first time since the team moved to Atlanta from St Louis in 1968.

About 10 minutes after the Wizards lost, there was more heartbreak for DC sports fans. The Capitals were eliminated from the NHL play-offs with a Game 7 overtime loss to the New York Rangers.

At least the Wizards still have a chance. Game 6 is Friday night in Washington.

“Hey, these guys are fighting. I love it,” Washington coach Randy Wittman said. “They made one more play than us.”

Wall’s return was the major storyline before the game. The Wizards star fractured several bones in his left hand in the series opener and missed the next three games. He was announced as the starter about 20 minutes before tipoff and wound up with 15 points, seven assists and four steals.

Bradley Beal led the Wizards with 23 points.

Kyle Korver had a tough night for Atlanta, making only one basket. It was a huge one, however – a three-pointer with 4:58 remaining for Atlanta’s first basket of the fourth quarter. Horford followed with another three from the corner, and the Hawks were right back in the game.

At the end, he wound up with the ball a lot closer to the basket.

“We’re happy,” Horford said, “but we understand it’s one game.”

*Associated Press

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