Young shakes off incident to lead Hawks in Game 3
Shaking off a spitting in- cident at Madison Square Garden, Trae Young dazzled in the first home playoff game of his career, scoring 21 points and dishing out 14 assists to lead the Atlanta Hawks to a 105-94 victory over the New York Knicks in Game 3 of their opening-round series Friday night.
Spurred on by a raucous crowd of 15,743 in Atlanta, the Hawks pulled ahead 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.
This one was tight through much of the first half, but the Hawks closed the second quarter on a Young-powered, 22-5 run that sent the arena into an uproar.
The third-year point guard, who has complained of the Hawks being overlooked and was especially perturbed to be passed over for this year’s All-Star Game in his own city, was determined to make an impression in his first trip to the postseason.
In Game 1, Young hit the winning basket to silence the crowd at Madison Square Garden’s first playoff contest since 2013. He certainly excelled during the spurt that essentially decided the most lopsided game of the series, having a hand in 18 of the 22 points.
Young scored five points himself, hitting a 3 and a step-back jumper, but spent most of his time scooting around the court, creating for teammates.
A lob pass to John Collins for a thunderous dunk. A pass to set up Collins for an open 3. Another alley-oop to Clint Capela for a slam that prompted both players to unleash emphatic screams. A nifty pass to find Bogdan Bogdanovic all alone for a 3. And, finally, one more dish to set up De’Andre Hunter’s jumper beyond the arc.
The Hawks led 58-44 at the half. The Knicks never got the margin below double figures the rest of the way.
During Game 2 in New York, a Knicks fan spit on Young as he was inbounding the ball during the fourth quarter of a tight contest — one of three incidents in a matter of hours at NBA arenas across the country, renewing calls for increased security and other measures to deal with unruly fans. A total of five fans in New York, Philadelphia and Utah were banned from games for their misbehavior.
With Young spreading the wealth, the Hawks put their depth to good use. Seven players scored in double figures, including Collins with 14 points after he was held scoreless in Game 2 while dealing with foul trouble.
All-Star Julius Randle had another tough night Friday and was serenaded constantly with chants of “Overrated”
Randle was held to 14 points on 2-of-15 shooting. For the series, he has made just 13 of 54 from the field.
Derrick Rose led the Knicks with 30 points. INJURED ANKLE KEEPS WIZ
ARDS’ WESTBROOK OUT OF PRACTICE >> Washington Wizards star Russell Westbrook did not practice Friday due to a right ankle injury and his status for Game 3 today against the visiting Philadelphia 76ers is unclear.
The Wizards point guard sustained the injury during Wednesday’s 120-95 loss in Game 2 at top-seeded Philadelphia, which has a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference firstround series.
BUCKS’ DIVINCENZO OUT
FOR PLAYOFFS WITH FOOT INJURY >> Milwaukee Bucks starting guard Donte DiVincenzo has a torn ligament in his left foot and will miss the remainder of the playoffs.
DiVincenzo, 24, missed all four of his shots from the floor and finished without a point in the Bucks’ 113-84 victory over the Miami Heat on Thursday in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
The severity of the injury was revealed Friday after DiVincenzo underwent an MRI in Miami. Milwaukee holds a 3-0 lead.