Irving, Celtics rally past Hawks

Kyrie Irving continued his hot shooting Saturday, scoring 32 points to lead the visiting Boston Celtics to a 113-105 win over the Atlanta Hawks. Irving, who had totaled 65 points in the two previous games combined, kept the Celtics in the contest with 20 first-half points. He was 11-for-19 from the field, including 5-for-8 on 3 pointers, with five assists.

Boston won its third straight game, ended a three-game losing streak on the road and has beaten the Hawks three times this season. They play for the final time on March 16 in Boston. Boston also got 19 points from Jayson Tatum, 14 from Atlanta native Jaylen Brown and 13 points and nine rebounds from Al Horford.

The Celtics outscored the Hawks 30-16 in the fourth quarter and pulled away in the final minutes. Atlanta had five players in double figures, led by Kevin Huerter with 18 points. John Collins added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Alex Len had 15 points and six rebounds, and Trae Young had 16 points and seven assists but committed six turnovers. DeAndre' Bembry netted 10 points.

After an early 3-2 lead, the Celtics played from behind for most of the game. Atlanta led by as many as 16 points in the first half and enjoyed a 67-60 lead at halftime. Boston kept creeping close and finally surged ahead when Brown made a 3-pointer with 9:07 remaining to give the Celtics a 95-93 lead. The Hawks went back ahead, 100-99, on a Len basket, but Irving hit a layup to kick off a 10-0 Celtics run that ended with another Irving basket with 1:11 to go. Boston held on from there.

Things got testy in the third quarter after Marcus Smart was dealt his second technical foul and ejected. The Celtics guard charged after Bembry, with whom he had exchanged words, and needed to be held back by his teammates, Hawks players and the referees. Atlanta plays again Monday when it hosts Orlando. Boston will host Miami on Monday.

--Field Level Media

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)