Final: Hawks 120, Celtics 118 - C's blow 30 point lead, can't execute down the stretch

BOSTON CELTICS at ATLANTA HAWKS

7:30 p.m. - NBCS Boston/NBA TV

Line: Boston - 10.5

INJURIES

Boston: Jrue Holiday (OUT, shoulder), Derrick White (OUT, hand), Xavier Tillman (OUT, knee)

Atlanta: Trae Young (OUT, finger), Saddiq Bey (OUT, ACL), Jalen Johnson (OUT, ankle), Onyeka Okongwu (OUT, toe), Kobe Bufkin (OUT, toe), AJ Griffin (OUT, ankle), Mouhamed Gueye (OUT, knee)    

LAST TIME

Celtics 125, Hawks 117 - February 7

Boston gave up 37 points in the first quarter, 21 combined to Bey and Young, to take an early two-point lead. Al Horford had a huge second quarter on both ends (11 points, three blocks) to push Boston to a four-point halftime lead. They actually added one to the lead in the third despite Jayson Tatum struggling. They built a 13-point lead in the fourth, and it looked like they were running away, but the Hawks made one last run but could get no closer than five. 

NOTES

• The Celtics have officially clinched the top seed in the East. The best Milwaukee can do is tie at this point, and Boston now owns the tiebreaker.
• Derrick White was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week. White helped lead the Celtics to an undefeated 4-0 week and was the only player in the NBA to average at least 20.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 8.8 assists, and 1.0 blocks during the week. He also notched his first career triple-double. 

THINGS I’M LOOKING FOR

1. Keep Hauser hot: Let me just play off my big video breakdown from earlier in the day to highlight the priority of getting early touches for a guy on a heater like Hauser. I’d like to see him hit one within the first couple of minutes of the game and then let it flow from there. 

2. Defend: The Hawks, even with all those injuries, are still capable of putting the ball in the basket. Bogdan Bogdanovic can fill it up. Dejounte Murray can fill it up. They can put points, but they can’t stop anyone. A 105-100 score after three quarters isn’t out of the question… but if Boston defends it could be 105-78. 

3. Jaylen Brown home crowd: JB is at home. Maybe the guys let him show out a little in front of the home crowd. Maybe they feed him for a 50-piece. 

Follow along with my thoughts as the game goes on. They’ll show up below and in the comments section, so hop in and share your opinion as well.