Young scores 48 points, Hawks beat Bucks in Game 1
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Trae Young remains as poised as ever in hostile environments in his first postseason.
Young scored 48 points, Clint Capela converted a go-ahead putback with 29.8 seconds left and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Milwaukee Bucks 116-113 on Wednesday night to open the Eastern Conference finals.
The Hawks improved to 6-2 in road playoff games this year and handed the Bucks their first home loss of the postseason.
“Ever since I was in middle school, when I was going on the road in middle school, I always loved playing on the road,” said Young, who was two points off his career high.
“I loved playing against an opposing crowd, an opposing team. It feels like you’re really with your team, and it’s just them in the building. I think that really brings our group together.” Game 2 is Friday night in Milwaukee.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 34 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists for the Bucks. Jrue Holiday added 33 points and 10 assists.
Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton missed a potential tying 3-pointer in the closing seconds. Although Middleton scored 15 points, he shot 6 of 23 and missed all nine of his 3-point attempts.
“I’ve just got to be better,” Middleton said. “It’s as simple as that.”
The Hawks reached the East finals in 2015, but were swept by Cleveland. The Hawks did win a title in 1958 and reached the league finals in 1957, 1960 and 1961 when they were in St. Louis.
“It’s special,” Young said. “I wanted to achieve things like this when I was a rookie. Coming in as a rookie, you don’t know how hard it is until you’ve got to actually do it.”
John Collins added 23 points and 15 rebounds for the Hawks. Capela had 12 points and 19 rebounds.
“It’s a matter of us just trying to withstand, hold the fort and try to make plays,” Collins said. “And I feel like we did that down at the end.”
“Young is a great player,” Antetokounmpo said. “We’ve got to make it as tough as possible for him, be physical with him. From the first minute to the last minute, tough.”