Jalen Johnson posts 35 points to fuel a comeback victory, extending the Hawks' winning streak to six as they dominate the second half against the 76ers.
The Atlanta Hawks have won six consecutive games, their longest winning streak of the season, after rallying past the Philadelphia 76ers 125-116 at State Farm Arena on Saturday.
Atlanta trailed 73-66 at halftime before outscoring Philadelphia 59-43 in the second half to secure the victory, improving to 33-31 on the year.
Jalen Johnson was the primary reason why. It didn't matter which defender the 76ers sent his way, Johnson would finish the play. He scored nine of his 35 points on 4-of-6 shooting in the fourth quarter, drawing "MVP" chants from the FanDuel 404 Crew when he stepped to the free-throw line late. Johnson also added 10 rebounds and seven assists, securing his 39th double-double of the season. In four games against Philadelphia this season, he has three double-doubles and one triple-double.
"I just kind of knew what to expect with them being an aggressive defensive team," Johnson said. "I just tried to match that as best as possible and let things fall where they may."
His teammates fed off it. When asked about Johnson's performance, Nickeil Alexander-Walker didn't hesitate.
"It was amazing," Alexander-Walker said. "The aggression he played with, the decisiveness getting downhill, not settling — it was very timely when we needed it. He kept rolling, and we were all behind him."
Hawks coach Quin Snyder credited Johnson's willingness to absorb contact as a key factor.
"I thought he attacked the rim. He didn't try to avoid contact. He went through it and we saw the result of it," Snyder said. "His catch-and-shoot threes continue to be a really important part of his game because people have to come up and guard him. That gives him a chance to drive the ball. He's making the right play."
Alexander-Walker finished with 24 points and six assists. CJ McCollum added 17 points and seven assists. Dyson Daniels chipped in 15 points and nine rebounds.
Daniels also found himself in a dust-up with Trendon Watford during the game.
"He was running his mouth all game. And he threw the ball at me and pushed me. So I just tried to fire the boys up a little bit and get us going," Daniels said. "But yeah, like I said, I miss fighting. So miss my brothers. We're used to getting into little push-and-shoves. It's good fun. But, yeah, I'll pay my fine."
Johnson addressed the trash talk as well.
"It was cool. Trash talk is a part of the game," Johnson said. "What happens between those lines stays between those lines. It's nothing personal. Every hooper you talk to loves trash talking. It gets you going. Everybody was amped up tonight."
The Hawks trailed for much of the first half after struggling to take care of the ball, but found a spark with a 7-0 run in the second quarter kicked off by a Johnson dunk. McCollum then hit a 3-pointer that forced Philadelphia to call timeout, before Atlanta forced a Tyrese Maxey turnover and McCollum converted a layup on the other end. The 76ers finished the half on back-to-back 3s from Maxey and Quentin Grimes, but Atlanta carried enough momentum into the break to take over in the second half.
Alexander-Walker explained the halftime adjustment on both ends.
"In the first half, they were comfortable. Maxey got comfortable early, Oubre got hot early," Alexander-Walker said. "We needed to take guys out of their rhythm. We've worked to become a better defensive team, and I felt like in the first half we took a step back. But we made adjustments on the fly. That's part of our growth as a team — communicating, figuring it out together on the bench, in timeouts, and on the court."
Johnson echoed that sentiment.
"Guys talked and we knew we were going to go on our run eventually," Johnson said. "We came out aggressive and swinging. We set the tone on how the rest of the game was going to go in those first couple minutes of the third quarter."
The game also had its highlight moments. In the second quarter, McCollum threw up a lob and Johnson climbed the ladder to finish. Second-year forward Zaccharie Risacher got in on the action too, registering a blindside block on Jabari Walker before stealing the ball from Kelly Oubre and finishing with a finger roll layup at the other end. Risacher finished with eight points on two 3-pointers, but Snyder made clear the stat line didn't capture his impact.
"I thought he changed the game for us during that stretch," Snyder said. "To have a player have success doing something like that — he had a few big possessions on the offensive glass. Your shot just becomes part of your game. It's good to see someone rewarded for doing things that basically are winning plays."
Johnson was equally effusive about his teammate.
"Zach does a lot of things that go unnoticed," Johnson said. "Him and Dyson are probably our best offensive rebounders on the team. Zach does a bunch of the dirty work and we really appreciate him doing that. He's a hell of a defender and we all have confidence in him."
Alexander-Walker pointed to the consistency of Risacher's work habits as the reason for his development.
"He works every morning. I see him every morning working," Alexander-Walker said. "He has the right input, and it's just a matter of time before the game gives back."
For the 76ers, who were without Joel Embiid, Paul George, and VJ Edgecombe, the loss dropped them from sixth to eighth in the Eastern Conference standings. It was the second time in two weeks that Atlanta defeated Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, the Hawks moved to ninth place in the East after the Charlotte Hornets fell to the Miami Heat on Friday, giving Atlanta a one-game cushion on Charlotte. The Orlando Magic and Heat sit sixth and seventh, respectively, with the Toronto Raptors holding a one-game lead on both for fifth.
When asked what has changed since the All-Star break, Johnson kept it simple.
"Once the All-Star break is over with it's time to up the intensity and try to position ourselves for the playoffs," Johnson said. "Everybody has that mentality of wanting to win. After the break, we had to up our level and our trust in each other. I think we've done a great job of that so far."
Alexander-Walker pointed to the team's ability to win different kinds of games as the most telling sign.
"Each game presents itself differently," Alexander-Walker said. "Earlier in the season, that might've broken us. Our defense might've cracked and turned into big gaps. Now we communicate, stay focused and play tough."
Atlanta opens a five-game home stretch on Tuesday, hosting Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks at State Farm Arena at 7:30 p.m. EST. The stretch also includes games against the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Orlando Magic. The Magic matchup carries the most standing implications, but the Hawks need wins against the Nets and Mavericks first.