Jalen Johnson had 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists, his fourth career triple-double, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-123.
Zaccharie Risacher’s corner 3-pointer put the Hawks ahead for good with 1:09 left in the fourth quarter.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s 3-pointer with 48.7 seconds left made it 129-123 and put it away.
During clutch time, the Hawks outscored the Cavaliers 18-10. Johnson scored 6 of the Hawks’ 18 on 1 for 1 shooting and 4 for 4 at the line. Late in the fourth quarter, Johnson had 4 of his 12 assists, 1 of them on a basket by Onyeka Okongwu that tied the game and 2 on baskets by Risacher that put the Hawks ahead. With 3:42 left, Johnson stole the ball from Darius Garland, and Risacher’s driving dunk off it put the Hawks ahead 117-116.
Alexander-Walker scored 30 points with 5 3-pointers. The Hawks had 7 players in double-digit scoring.
For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell scored 42 points with 7 3-pointers, and Evan Mobley added 20 points (8 in the fourth quarter), 14 rebounds and 7 assists. Mitchell scored 16 of his 42 points in the fourth quarter.
The Hawks shot 52.7% from the field to the Cavaliers’ 46.3% and outscored them 36-17 on the fast break. The Cavaliers forced 14 turnovers, about 4 fewer than usual for this many possessions. The Hawks’ starters outscored the Cavaliers 66-46 in 20 minutes together.