De'Andre Hunter Leads Hawks Over Hornets in NBA Play-In Tournament

In a do-or-die elimination game, De'Andre Hunter came up big for the Atlanta Hawks. Hunter scored 22 points to help keep Atlanta's season alive as the Hawks defeated the Charlotte Hornets 132-103 on Wednesday night in the NBA Play-In Tournament.

After a slow first half in which he went just 1/6 from the floor and scored only three points, Hunter exploded in the third quarter for 16 points on 7/8 shooting. He also played smothering defense on the Hornets, holding them to 1/4 shooting in the period when he was the primary defender.

Dre putting his stamp on this one pic.twitter.com/UZbE4MTts5
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) April 14, 2022

Atlanta led by just eight points at halftime, but outscored the Hornets by 18 in the third quarter thanks to Hunter's strong performance. The Hawks cruised to a near-30 point victory in the fourth quarter.

De'Andre Hunter has simply decided to take over this game.
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) April 14, 2022

The former UVA men's basketball star finished with an impressive stat line of 22 points on 9/16 shooting, seven rebounds, two assists, and a +/- of +23.

The Hawks move on to play at the No. 8 seed Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday at 7:30pm with a berth in the NBA Playoffs on the line. The winner will advance to play the No. 1 seed Miami Heat in the first round.

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