Hawks Hold Off Lakers, 91-86
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dennis Schroder had 24 points and 10 assists, Al Horford scored 21 points and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 91-86 on Sunday night.
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer rested starters Jeff Teague, DeMarre Carroll and Paul Millsap and inserted Schroder at the point, Pero Antic at small forward and former Laker Kent Bazemore at power forward. Schroder, the 17th overall pick in the 2013 draft, made his seventh start in 113 NBA games and was 7 for 16 from the field in his best game as a pro.
Atlanta (52-14) moved within a half-game of idle Golden State for the NBA's best record with 16 games left on the schedule -- including a showdown with the Warriors on Wednesday night at Oakland. The Hawks also tied a franchise record with their 22nd road win.
Reserves Carlos Boozer and Ryan Kelly each scored 13 points for the reeling Lakers, who lost for the 23rd time in 28 games.
Kyle Korver, one of the Hawks' regular starters, left with a broken nose after taking an offensive foul from Ed Davis with 8:59 left in the first half.
The injury ended a streak of 51 consecutive games with a 3-pointer by Korver, who missed both of his shots from behind the arc. The 12-year veteran also owns an NBA-record streak of 127 games with a 3-point field goal. It began with his second game in a Hawks uniform, and ended on March 5, 2014, at Portland.
The Lakers entered the fourth quarter trailing 68-58 with no players in double-figure scoring. Elton Brand, who used to call Staples Center home during his seven seasons with the Clippers, triggered an 8-2 spurt with a layup that helped the Hawks extend their lead to 80-65 with 7:05 to play.
Los Angeles came roaring back with a 16-2 run fueled by Boozer's eight points and capped by Wesley Johnson's 3-pointer, which sliced the deficit to 85-83 with 30 seconds left.
But Schroder cut through the lane for a layup with 13.9 seconds left. Johnson then missed a 3-pointer from the left corner, and the Hawks sealed the win with two free throws each by Bazemore and Schroder.
TIP-INS
Hawks: Atlanta signed F Austin Daye to a 10-day contract as a stop-gap replacement for backup forward Mike Scott, who is expected to miss four to six weeks because of a broken toe on his left foot. Daye played 26 games with San Antonio this season. ... The Hawks came in as the only team among the league's top five in field-goal percentage, 3-point shooting and free-throw percentage. ... Antic picked up his first two fouls three seconds apart and went to the bench with 8:28 left in the first quarter. He finished with three points in 23 minutes. ... The Hawks have won 12 of their last 18 games, following a 33-2 surge.
Lakers: Reserve swingman Nick Young is scheduled to have a CT scan Monday on his swollen left knee, which has forced him to miss the last 10 games. ... The loss ended an eight-game home winning streak against the Hawks, who hadn't beaten the Lakers at Staples Center since Feb. 15, 2006.
UP NEXT
Hawks: At Sacramento on Monday night.
Lakers: At Golden State on Monday night.
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