7 Score in Double-Digits as Hawks Pull Away Late for 111-101 Win vs. Wizards

The Atlanta Hawks just needed some home cooking.

After dropping the first two games of their playoff series against the Washington Wizards on the road, they evened the battle at two games apiece Monday with a 111-101 victory at Philips Arena in Atlanta. Paul Millsap, Dwight Howard and Dennis Schroder led a balanced effort, as ESPN Stats & Info noted Atlanta became the first team this playoffs with seven scorers in double figures:

Player	Points	Assists	Rebounds	Field Goals
Paul Millsap	19	7	9	6-of-15
Dennis Schroder	18	1	3	6-of-15
Dwight Howard	16	1	15	6-of-14
Kent Bazemore	16	7	4	5-of-12
Jose Calderon	10	5	2	4-of-9
Tim Hardaway Jr.	15	1	2	6-of-12
Taurean Prince	11	1	7	5-of-7

Bradley Beal (32 points and five made three-pointers) and John Wall (22 points, 10 assists and five rebounds) spearheaded Washington's effort, but the visitors were outscored by a combined 26 points in the second and fourth quarters.

Balanced Effort Does the Trick

Millsap and Schroder were the Hawks' top two scorers, but the supporting cast did plenty of the heavy lifting Monday.

Dwight Howard turned back the clock with 16 points and 15 rebounds and had a double-double in the first half after failing to score more than seven points in any of the first three games. He was especially effective in the second quarter (which Atlanta won 31-15) when he consistently enforced his will down low against an overmatched Wizards frontcourt.

Jose Calderon (plus-29, per NBA.com) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (15 points) were also critical when Atlanta bounced back from a slow opening quarter, as Dan Wolken of USA Today noted:

Kent Bazemore got in on the action as well with 16 points and seven assists and multiple lobs to Howard, which ESPN's Bomani Jones noticed:

Schroder and Millsap then came through down the stretch when Atlanta outscored Washington 34-24 in the fourth after the supporting cast put them in position to win. If Atlanta can find a way to replicate the balanced formula two more times, Washington's potential deep postseason run will be in jeopardy.

Hawks Win the Frontcourt Battle Within the Battle

There are always subplots beyond the final score in long playoff series, and Millsap and Washington's Markieff Morris have filled that role.

Millsap said the Wizards were fighting MMA instead of playing basketball after Atlanta's Game 1 loss, per Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Morris called the Hawks' forward a "crybaby," per Candace Buckner of the Washington Post."

Millsap told reporters the crybaby comment made it "personal," and the Hawks frontcourt played like it was against Washington's on Monday.

Millsap and Howard outpaced Morris (nine points on 3-of-10 shooting) and Marcin Gortat (two points), and the crowd had fun at Morris' expense, per Fox Sports Hawks:

Morris attempted to set a physical tone with Millsap and committed five fouls, but Atlanta's four-time All-Star had none of it:

Michael Pina of Vice Sports reacted to Millsap's performance, which included multiple clutch baskets when the game was hanging in the balance in the final quarter:

Although Gortat held his own on the glass with 18 rebounds, Washington will need better offensive efforts from its starting big men to win this series.

Wizards Backcourt Did What it Could

Washington fans can't blame the team's dynamic backcourt duo for Monday's loss.

Beal bounced back from just 12 points in a Game 3 loss, and J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic pointed out he was playing his game despite Atlanta's defense:

Wall was his normal brilliant self again after averaging 31 points and 10 assists a night in the first three games of the series. Schroder couldn't stay in front of him in the early going and found himself in foul trouble, although that opened the door for Atlanta's supporting cast.

Wall's blinding speed and Beal's scoring touch were both problems for Atlanta, but Haralabos Voulgaris pointed out the offense looked lost at times without them:

"

Might want to rethink sitting Wall and Beal at the same time just saying.

— Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) April 25, 2017"

Washington's supporting cast will have a chance to rectify things back at home in Wednesday's Game 5.