Hawks Humble Celts

Celtics Fall to 23-5
1990-91 Boston Celtics

Nobody bothered to yell anything like "timber!" or "avalanche!" Nobody warned the Celtics that fate would come crashing upon them so hard it would make their 23-4 start seem like ancient history. Nobody knew -- except maybe an Atlanta Hawks team that embarrassed Boston before a sellout crowd last night. Those guys didn't say anything either. Nobody would have believed them, anyway.

Two teams that at times this season have appeared headed in different directions collided for the second time in five days -- and this time Boston got leveled. Doc Rivers scored a season-high 36 points and Dominique Wilkins added 31 as Atlanta routed Boston, 131-114, in a game that was over by the third quarter.

The win snaps an eight-game winning steak for the Celtics, which appeared outhustled and outplayed in both transition and halfcourt games. Atlanta improved to 14-13 as the Hawks tallied the most points they've scored all season.

The Celtics figured that such an output by Atlanta was possible. They humiliated the Hawks, 132-104, at the Garden Sunday -- a game that was postponed then continued because of a slippery surface. They talked about the Hawks coming out with a vengeance. They talked about meeting such a challenge. But who could have figured the Hawks would shoot 59 percent from the floor in the third period, when they increased their 14-point halftime lead to 25? Who would have thought they'd hit 9 of 13 3-point attempts? Who would have figured Boston's Fab Three tandem of Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale would be on the bench with their warmup jackets on at the start of the fourth period?

Certainly not head coach Chris Ford. The coach who is already known for standing along the Celtic bench through much of the game sat for much of the second half. All his strategies went for naught.

"We just didn't have enough effort," he said. "It was just one of those things. The Hawks had something to play for. They have a lot of pride. They were probably embarrassed by that loss in Boston. We talked about that before the game, how they would not just let us come in and do what we did in Boston.

"They played aggressive, and we didn't meet the challenge. Each time this year that has happened to us, we have lost. It happened in San Antonio; when we don't meet the challenge we get in trouble."

Trouble began in the first quarter, when the Celtics were leading, 23-16, with 5:20 to go. Atlanta tied it at 24-24, then took advantage of a Celtics draught (nothing on six consecutive possessions) to take a 30-26 lead after one.

The Hawks began to blow it open in the second period, as Wilkins and Moses Malone dominated both inside and out. Malone had two 3-point plays, the second put Atlanta ahead, 50-42, with 5:02 left. It prompted two fans in the stands to go, "He's playing hard; it must be payday for Moses today."

Looks like Wilkins got a check, too. He was 3 for 3 from 3-point distance in the period, his final trifecta put the Hawks up, 63-48, with 1:40 to go in the period.

"We came out strong," said Wilkins. "Confident play, good defense, good offense and unselfish basketball was the key tonight."

The third period was downright embarrassing for Boston. Spud Webb (14 points) hit a 3-pointer over Bird to make the score 80-60 with 7:32 left. At the 6:30 mark, Wilkins threw down a one-handed tomahawk slam all alone to create bedlam in the crowd and put Atlanta ahead, 88-64. Another dunk by Wilkins, with 2:29 left, made it 98-75.

At times the Hawks were laughing at their accomplishments or throwing hard high-fives as the Celtics looked on. And the fourth period hadn't even begun.

"They played very well, but our effort wasn't quite like we like it to be when we're on the road," said Bird (15 points). "We turned the ball over too many times and they got too many easy baskets, and then Doc started hitting outside shots, and then we got out to contest the shots and they just drove by us. We played terrible, one of our worst games in a long time."

Prior to the game, the Celtics had concerns about getting out of Atlanta before today because of airport delays throughout the Northeast. Nobody figured their offense would be grounded, too.

"We would have liked to have finished out 1990 with a win, but that didn't happen," said Dee Brown (11 points). "We just have to go out and regroup for our next game."