Trae Young scored 38 points and had a big night all around, helping the Atlanta Hawks secure a 125-120 victory against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday.
Young made five 3-pointers out of 14 attempts, recorded 10 assists, grabbed eight rebounds, and had four steals. He played for 41 minutes without much rest.
With 4:34 left in the game, Miles Bridges made two free throws to bring Charlotte within two points. Young responded with a floater, and teammate Jalen Johnson added a three-point play to give Atlanta a 114-107 lead.
Tre Mann from the Hornets hit a three-pointer to close the gap, but Johnson sealed the win by making two free throws with 6.7 seconds left.
The Hornets faced a setback when LaMelo Ball fouled out with 3:33 remaining. He finished the game with 34 points and a career-high nine three-pointers, but also had 10 turnovers.
De’Andre Hunter scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds for Atlanta, while Dyson Daniels added 18 points and Jalen Johnson contributed 16. The Hawks shot better than the Hornets, making 48.1 percent of their shots compared to Charlotte’s 38.5 percent.
For the Hornets, Miles Bridges scored 27 points, Tre Mann came off the bench to add 17, and Nick Richards had 12 points along with 13 rebounds.
Charlotte closed the third quarter strong, scoring eight of the last 13 points to make it 88-85 as they entered the fourth. Mann led this surge with a three-point play and two free throws.
Atlanta started the game strong, scoring the first seven points and leading 28-16 at the end of the first quarter.
Three free throws from Young and two from Garrison Mathews increased the Hawks’ lead to 41-26 with 8:35 left in the first half.
LaMelo Ball helped bring Charlotte back into the game, scoring 10 points during a 14-3 run that brought the Hornets within 57-55 with 56 seconds left in the half.
Despite this effort, Atlanta maintained the lead and went into halftime ahead 62-58.
