Hawks at Celtics
THE STORY: The Boston Celtics take a second stab at clinching their first-round series when they host the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday. Atlanta cut Boston’s lead to 3-2 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference matchup by notching an 87-86 victory in Tuesday’s Game 5. The Hawks are vying to become the ninth team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit. The Celtics would like to wrap up the series at home and avoid a Game 7 in Atlanta on Saturday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT, Sport South (Atlanta), Comcast SportsNet New England (Boston)
ABOUT THE HAWKS: Center Al Horford started for the first time in nearly four months and had 19 points and 11 rebounds and also hit the go-ahead basket. Horford played 41 minutes in his second game since tearing a pectoral muscle in January. Horford’s presence has bolstered a squad that looked ready to go quietly after forward Josh Smith missed Game 3 with a knee injury. Smith had 13 points and 16 rebounds in Game 5 and is averaging 16.5 points and 14.8 rebounds in the series. Guard Joe Johnson is averaging a team-leading 17.2 points despite shooting just 23.3 percent from 3-point range.
ABOUT THE CELTICS: Boston had a chance to clinch in the final seconds of Game 5 after Rajon Rondo stole an inbounds pass for his fifth steal of the contest, but the Celtics were unable to get off a shot as Rondo fumbled the ball. Rondo is averaging 17.5 points, 12.8 assists and four steals in the four games in which he has played. Forward Paul Pierce is struggling physically with his ailing left knee and had 16 points and is averaging a team-leading 21.8 points. Guard Ray Allen is playing well despite his ankle injury and averaging 13.3 points off the bench.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Atlanta’s 87 points in Game 5 were its most in the series, while Boston has scored fewer than 86 points just once.
2. Hawks forward Marvin Williams was a big contributor in Game 5 with 15 points after scoring a total of 16 points over the first four games.
3. Celtics forward Kevin Garnett has just 12 combined rebounds over the last two games after averaging 12.3 per game over the first three contests.