Play-In Game 1: April 15, 2025
Atlanta Hawks at Orlando Magic
Final Score: ATL 95 – ORL 120
The Atlanta Hawks fell to the Orlando Magic in the first round of the NBA Play-In Tournament. Atlanta and the Miami Heat will do battle at State Farm Arena on Friday to determine which squad faces the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs. The loser goes home.
The Hawks are at their best when they score in transition and force their opponent into turnovers. They did neither against Orlando, managing just four fastbreak points and forcing eight turnovers. The Magic held Atlanta to 28-63 shooting from inside the arc and dominated the glass, 54-42. Wendell Carter Jr. grabbed five offensive rebounds for 19 points, leading his squad to a 25-15 advantage in second-chance points.
Across the season series, Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner averaged 33 and 28 points per game, respectively. However, neither Magic star reached the 20-point mark in this game; in fact, they combined for 10 points on 27 field goal attempts. Orlando’s bench did most of the heavy scoring behind Cole Anthony and Anthony Black.
Anthony dropped 26 points on 10-17 from the field. When the Hawks cut their deficit to three points midway through the third frame, Anthony hit multiple big shots to kill the visitors’ momentum. Black added 16 points, only missing one of his seven field goals, and made all three triples.
Trae Young was ejected late in the fourth quarter after receiving two technical fouls. He scored 12 of his 28 points in the third frame, but Atlanta struggled to generate easy offense outside of its star guard. Georges Niang scored 15, but only two more Hawks, Mouhamed Gueye and Onyeka Okongwu, cracked double-digits.
Play-In Game 2: April 18, 2025
Miami Heat at Atlanta Hawks
Final Score in OT: MIA 123 – ATL 114
The Heat ended the Hawks’ 2024-25 campaign in the second round of the Play-In. Atlanta was down double digits early, starting the game 5-17 from the field. Miami led 33-24 after the first quarter and extended its lead to 17 points in the second. It looked like the Hawks were at risk of another blowout defeat, but Niang and Caris LeVert came off the bench firing. They scored 13 and 12 points, respectively, in the first half to cut the Heat’s lead to 62-53 at halftime.
After both teams scored 24 points in the third frame, the Hawks started the fourth on a 14-2 run. Terance Mann, Dyson Daniels, and Young cashed in four triples for Atlanta’s first lead of the game, 91-88. The Hawks stretched their lead out to six points behind an Okongwu steal and jam to ignite the home crowd.
THIS SEQUENCE FROM ONYEKA OKONGWU 😱 pic.twitter.com/P342KgetLR
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 19, 2025
However, Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell countered with a 7-0 push to take the lead right back.
Under two minutes left, both teams exchanged makes and misses until Herro missed a free throw to keep the Hawks’ deficit at two. With six seconds on the game clock, Young’s layup tied the contest at 106 apiece, and the Hawks forced Andrew Wiggins into a tough fadeaway to force overtime.
The Heat dominated the extra period 17-8 behind hot three-point shooting. They went 5-6 from deep, led by Mitchell’s three triples.
Herro totaled 30 points, seven assists and eight boards, while Bam Adebayo had 17 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks. Wiggins added 20 points, and Mitchell scored 16 points on 4-9 shooting from downtown.
Young ended with 29 points and 11 dimes after shooting just 3-11 in the first half. Okongwu dominated with 28 points, 12 boards, and four triples. Niang scored 20, but after a hot start, LeVert scored just three points in the second half.
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