The Atlanta Hawks held off the Indiana Pacers 108-104 on Monday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, with Nickeil Alexander-Walker scoring a game-high 34 points on 12-of-25 shooting. Atlanta built a 15-point cushion in the first half and survived a late Indiana push to improve to 4-4.
Alexander-Walker made 9 of 15 three-pointers, adding four steals and four assists. The Pacers got 22 points from Jay Huff and 19 points and 10 assists from Braden Smith, but Indiana shot just 8-of-34 from three-point range and fell to 2-6.
Takeaways From Hawks’ Win Over Pacers
Atlanta’s three-point barrage built the cushion
The Hawks shot 23-of-51 from deep (45%) compared to Indiana’s 8-of-34 (24%), a 15-make gap that accounted for the final margin almost by itself. Corey Kispert hit 4 of 7 three-pointers off the bench for 14 points, and Luguentz Dort added 4-of-6 shooting from deep for 14 points. Atlanta used a 23-6 run spanning the first and second quarters, highlighted by three straight Kispert threes, to push the lead to 15 points, its largest of the night.
Indiana dominated the paint but couldn’t close the gap
The Pacers outscored the Hawks 54-26 in points in the paint and shot 48% from the field overall, well above Atlanta’s 39%. Jarace Walker played 45 minutes and finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, while Jay Huff added eight dunks and layups en route to his 22-point night. Indiana also went 20-of-23 from the free-throw line. None of it was enough to overcome the three-point deficit, and the Pacers never led by more than two points all game.
Atlanta’s bench provided the separation
Hawks reserves Kispert and RayJ Dennis combined for key second-quarter buckets as Atlanta turned a seven-point edge into a 15-point lead. Onyeka Okongwu added 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds in 33 minutes, giving Atlanta a second double-digit scorer to pair with Alexander-Walker’s outburst. CJ McCollum’s 12 assists kept the offense flowing even as he shot just 4-of-17 from the field.
Player Of The Game: Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Alexander-Walker finished with 34 points, four rebounds, four assists, four steals and four turnovers in 31 minutes, shooting 12-of-25 from the field and 9-of-15 from three-point range. His plus-six rating ranked behind only Dort’s plus-11 among Hawks starters, and his four three-pointers in the first quarter alone set the tone for Atlanta’s shooting night.
Hawks Vs Pacers By The Numbers
Atlanta out-rebounded Indiana 49-39, including a 17-5 edge on the offensive glass that led to extra scoring chances. The Hawks committed 16 turnovers to Indiana’s 18, and Atlanta’s 12 steals matched Indiana’s total. Atlanta’s 45% mark from three-point range nearly doubled Indiana’s 24% clip from beyond the arc, the single biggest statistical gap in the box score.
The Pacers’ 87% free-throw shooting on 23 attempts helped keep the game within reach despite the shooting disparity. Attendance at Gainbridge Fieldhouse was 16,058.
What It Means
Atlanta moved to 4-4 and sits a half-game behind Washington atop the Southeast Division standings. Indiana dropped its fifth straight game and fell to 2-6, now 4.5 games behind division-leading Detroit in the Central Standings. The Hawks also took a 1-0 lead in the season series against the Pacers.
What’s Next
The Hawks return home for their next game. The Pacers will look to snap a five-game losing streak in their next outing.
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