Robinson's last-second 3 sends Pacers over Hawks, 97-96 (Mar 05, 2017)
ATLANTA (AP) Glenn Robinson III waited patiently for the whirlwind turn of events to unfold, then positioned himself in the left corner.
The shot felt perfect as it left his hand.
''I just held my follow-through,'' Robinson said, ''and it went in.''
Robinson hit a 3-pointer with sixth-tenths of a second remaining, Paul George scored 34 points and the Indiana Pacers rallied in the closing minutes to beat the Atlanta Hawks 97-96 on Sunday.
Jeff Teague, in his first game back at Philips Arena after spending his first seven seasons with the Hawks, added 16 points and six assists.
Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 24 points and Paul Millsap had 23 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta, which has lost five of seven.
After Hardaway missed a 3 with 10.3 seconds remaining, Teague pushed the ball up the floor and passed to George, who whipped the ball from the right baseline to C.J. Miles on the left side of the perimeter. Miles fed Robinson for the wide-open shot.
''I believe in the basketball gods,'' Pacers coach Nate McMillan said. ''You've got to make your breaks.''
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer missed the game after getting suspended for bumping into a referee Friday against Cleveland. Assistant Darvin Ham took his place. Budenholzer will be back on the bench Monday.
Atlanta, which led 96-90 with 1:43 remaining, was coming off the five-point home loss in which Cleveland set an NBA single-game record with 25 3s.
George had 24 points at halftime, 10 in the third quarter and was 12-for-16 from the field, 6 of 7 beyond the arc, entering the fourth. He went 0-for-3 in the final period.
Indiana had lost eight of 10.
Atlanta was up 13 early in the second quarter and fell flat as Indiana went on a 20-4 run to go up 39-36 on Teague's floater 6 minutes later. Indiana took its biggest lead of the game, 11 points, when George hit a layup midway through the third.
''Pretty much all their points were in transition,'' Hardaway said. ''We have to do a better job of that from the start of the game to the finish of the game.''
Schroder finished with 18 points.
WELCOME BACK
Teague joined Al Horford, now with Boston, and Kyle Korver, now with Cleveland, as former Hawks returning this season to Philips Arena. All three left with a win.
Teague got a standing ovation during a video tribute between the first and second quarters. Only Horford was booed in his first game back, after he left as a free agent. Korver, like Teague, was traded away.
''It was actually a lot of fun,'' said Teague, who had a big steal against Millsap on Miles' basket that cut the lead to 96-94. ''I was a little nervous at the beginning of the game, to be honest. After the tribute thing was over with, I felt a lot better.''
TIP-INS
Pacers: Had lost 15 of 16 at Philips Arena. ... Myles Turner, the team's second-leading scorer this season, went 2-for-7 from the field and finished with five points. Lavoy Allen couldn't play because of a sore left knee. Thaddeus Young, battling a sore left wrist, played 24 minutes and scored four points.
Hawks: Ham debuted as head coach. He's been on the staff since Budenholzer took charge in 2013. ... Jose Calderon, claimed off waivers before the game, was in uniform but didn't play.
BRUTAL NUMBERS
The Hawks went 19-for-31 on free throws, including a 5-for-11 performance by Dwight Howard. The Pacers were 12-for-21 from the foul line.
UP NEXT
Pacers: At Charlotte on Monday. The Pacers are 11-20 on the road.
Hawks: Host Golden State on Monday. Atlanta has lost nine of 10 in the series.
