Raptors, Hawks take series leads
The Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks were both favorites to win their respective playoff series in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals. Yet, after four games in each tilt, the series were tied at 2-2 and there was anything but certainty for either team.
On Tuesday, both teams can out and got the job done in their home arenas, moving the series back on the road with both holding a commanding 3-2 lead.
Toronto certainly had to do it the hard way, dealing with a fantastic performance from Paul George in its 102-99 win. George is about the only player who can hurt you offensively on the Indiana Pacers’ roster these days, and he did plenty of damage in Game 5. George poured in 39 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field while being perfect on 12 free throw attempts. However, the Indiana bench let him down, with only Rodney Stuckey in the black for the plus/minus category (Stuckey was +1).
DeMar DeRozan came to the rescue for the Raptors, matching George at every turn. The prolific shooting guard put down 34 points albeit on 10-for-22 shooting while also hitting on 12-of-13 free throws. DeRozan was the lone man keeping the Air Canada Centre crowd going early, with Toronto trailing by 15 points after the first quarter. The Raptors made their big move in the fourth quarter, outscoring Indiana 25-9.
At this point, it seems almost certain that George will put the Pacers on his back in Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and come away with the win, forcing the series back to Toronto for the all-important Game 7.
Meanwhile, Atlanta was able to hold serve in its Game 5 at Philips Arena, beating the surging Celtics, 110-83. The Hawks started out slow, only scoring 15 points in the first quarter before exploding over the next two for a combined 74 points, including a 42-point outburst in the third period. Atlanta got a huge lift from reserve forward John Scott, who led the team with 17 points.
The Celtics could not do much offensively throughout the night, with Isaiah Thomas being held to seven points on 3-of-12 shooting from the field. Boston can’t survive when Thomas is listless, mostly because the roster is ill-equipped to pick up the slack. The leading scorer for the Celtics in Game 5? Evan Turner with 15 points. Ugh.
The Hawks are the better, deeper team with guys like Al Horford, Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver and Jeff Teague on the roster. This shouldn’t be much of a series, if not for the brilliant coaching of Boston head man Brad Stevens and the play of Thomas in the backcourt. While Atlanta ultimately wins this series, look for it also to go to Game 7.
