Ten observations: Sixers 121, Hawks 113

Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins dunks during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Philadelphia 76ers Tuesday, April 10, 2018, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Amis)

Credit: John Amis

Credit: John Amis

Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins dunks during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Philadelphia 76ers Tuesday, April 10, 2018, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Amis)
  1. The Sixers came to Philips Arena on a franchise record-tying 14-game winning streak. They needed a win to maintain the No. 3 playoff seed in the East and thus stay on the same side of the bracket as injury-riddled Boston and opposite top seed Toronto and LeBron James. A defeat would benefit the Hawks in the draft lottery but they've finished out the season playing to win. The Hawks gave a professional effort against the Sixers, responding each time the visitors threatened to bury them, and were down 109-104 with 3:18 to play. Hawks rookie John Collins' three-pointer cut the lead to 113-107 with 1:30 left but Taurean Prince missed a three-point try and Sixers vet Ersan Ilyasova's driving layup pushed the lead to 115-107 with 45.5 seconds to go. The Sixers held on from there and the Hawks couldn't finish with their first three-game winning streak of the season.
  2. The Hawks (24-58) ended the season with the fourth-worst record in the franchise's history. Three Hawks teams had worst records: the 2004-05 Atlanta Hawks (13-69), the 1951-52 Milwaukee Hawks (17-49) and the 1953-54 Milwaukee Hawks (21-51).
  3. Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer stuck with the same lineup as from Sunday: Damion Lee, DeAndre' Bembry, Prince, John Collins and Dewayne Dedmon. Pregame, Budenholzer said: "I was still thinking about tinkering with it, actually, but I was like, 'Naw, let's make a decision.'"
  4. The game started off with a pace that seemed too quick for both teams--lots of sloppy turnovers and forced shots at the basket--and that's pretty much how it went throughout. The Hawks made their first five field-goal attempts: Dedmon hook shot, Bembry layup on a nice hesitation move, Collins alley-oop dunk on a pass by Lee, Prince three-pointer and a transition dunk by Bembry after he tipped away Robert Covington's pass.
  5. Prince (27 points on 25 shots) made three of his first four three-point attempts but ended up 6-for-18 on threes. Prince finished the season shooting 38.5 percent on three-pointers (176-for-457) after shooting 32.4 percent as a rookie.
  6. Dedmon had the kind of efficient scoring game that was the norm for most of the year: 14 points on seven shots (6-for-7 on free throws). He had just seven rebounds in 25 minutes as the Sixers won 54-39 on the boards.
  7. Bembry played 5:29 in the first quarter and had three steals. He's a disruptive defender with his activity, length and positioning. Bembry was good as a play-maker in the first half but got a little out of control in the second. Budenholzer on Bembry pregame: "More often than not he's been good defensively. His ball-handling and getting to the basket (and) finding particularly corner threes, in transition . . . he makes some high-level passes, high-level reads. I think it's been a great four- or five-game stretch for him."
  8. Hawks rookie Tyler Dorsey went for 17 points on 12 shots. He scored 15 or more points in five of his last six games.
  9. Sixers power forward Dario Saric left the game for good after less than a minute because of a busted lip and chipped tooth. Ex-Hawk Ilyasova picked up the scoring slack with 26 points on 16 shots. Ex-Hawks chucker Marco Belinelli had 20 points on 15 shots.
  10. The Hawks led 32-27 after one quarter. The Sixers took control with a 14-4 run to open the second period and extended the surge to 24-8 for a 51-40 lead. The Hawks cracked back to tie it with an 11-0 run during which four players scored. The Hawks got in the bonus by attacking off the dribble and collected four steals in the period as the Sixers got loose with the ball when pushing the pace.