Instant Replay: Hawks 126, Sixers 98

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The momentum of Monday’s win over the Timberwolves couldn’t be sustained on Thursday against a more veteran opponent.

The Sixers jumped out to a six-point first-quarter lead against the Hawks but watched it slip away in the first half. The Hawks maintained control the rest of the game. Down by as many as 35 points at one point, the Sixers lost 126-98.

High numbers
Kent Bazemore led all players with 22 points. Jahlil Okafor was one point behind with 21 points and seven rebounds. Nerlens Noel nabbed a game-high 13 rebounds to go along with nine points. Ish Smith dished seven assists.

Turning point
The Sixers led 21-15 with 1:39 to play in the first quarter. The Hawks closed out the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a one point lead. They opened the second quarter on a 12-0 spurt in the first three minutes to go up 34-21. The Hawks went on a cumulative 21-1 run before Okafor snapped it with a bucket. The Hawks’ 39 points were the most allowed by the Sixers in a second quarter this season.

Another starting five
Brown went with his 20th starting lineup of the season. He gave the nod to Smith, Nik Stauskas, JaKarr Sampson, Noel and Okafor to counter Jeff Teague, Kyle Korver, Bazemore, Paul Millsap and Al Horford. Brown explained he creates lineups based on how to best defend the opponent — “I like to guard them,” he said — and would like to establish more consistency with the starting five.

Everyone gets a shot
Every active Sixer saw playing time against the Hawks. Kendall Marshall, who was a DNP-CD Monday, was the last to check in early into the fourth quarter. Every player but Carl Landry and T.J. McConnell clocked more than 10 minutes.

Of treys and turnovers
The Hawks feature one of the best three-point weapons in the game in Korver. Add in Bazemore and even big man Horford and they have multiple weapons. Defending their long range game was a priority for Brown, who saw it as more than just shooting.

“I think that the turnovers are like the spine to this whole game, everything is going to branch out from that,” Brown said before the game. “When you look at their points in the paint the last time we played them, when you look at the volume of threes they get, it's not because it's a halfcourt game. It's a busted five-on-four, four-on-three, odd-numbered break game because you threw it away.”

The Hawks shot 13 for 31 from behind the arc, with a trio of treys from Bazemore. The Sixers committed 22 turnovers, which led to 29 Hawks points.

Up next
The Sixers have a busy weekend coming up with back-to-back home games against the Toronto Raptors (22-15) and Cleveland Cavaliers (24-9) on Saturday and Sunday.

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