Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) - Jeff Teague scored all 17 of his points in the second half and added seven assists, and the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Hawks surged in the second half for a 95-88 win over the Orlando Magic.
Paul Millsap totaled 20 points and Al Horford chipped in 17 points with 13 rebounds for the Hawks, who posted their third consecutive victory.
"Their pick-and-roll defense gave us a lot of trouble," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said of the Magic. "They really came after it defensively."
Nikola Vucevic had 21 points and 15 boards to pace Orlando, which has lost back-to-back contests since winning three in a row. Victor Oladipo scored 19, Tobias Harris netted 15, and Channing Frye totaled 10 points in defeat.
After missing his first six shots from the field in the opening half, Teague heated up over the final 24 minutes by going 6-of-9. He scored nine during the pivotal third quarter that saw the Hawks erase a three-point halftime deficit and outscore the visitors, 34-22 in the third.
Teague's running layup gave the Hawks the lead for good at 58-56 with 6:50 left in the period. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Dennis Schroder and DeMarre Carroll later in the stanza moved the Hawks up seven. Kent Bazemore drove through the lane for a lefty layup in the dying seconds for a 76-67 difference moving to the fourth.
"It was another disappointing quarter defensively, but I loved how we kept fighting," Magic coach James Borrego said.
Atlanta was up as many as 10 in the fourth before the Magic closed within 89-86 on Vucevic's jumper with 1 1/2 minutes left. Orlando then caught a break when Millsap lost the ball in the lane was called for an offensive foul for plowing into Oladipo.
Vucevic, though, missed a short bank shot at the other end, and Teague drained a floater in the lane with 44.4 seconds left.
Following an air ball 3-pointer from Frye, Horford cemented the win when he slammed home Teague's miss with 19.4 seconds remaining.
Millsap had 14 points in the opening quarter to help the Hawks gain a 28-16 lead after 12 minutes. Atlanta scored 19 of the game's first 22 points.
Orlando trailed by as many as 16 in the second, but moved ahead in the closing minute of the half. Harris drained a 3-pointer and then hit a layup for a 45-42 edge for the visitors at the break.
Game Notes
Atlanta moved to 27-4 at home ... The Hawks are 14-3 in their last 17 regular- season encounters with the Magic and 9-1 as the host ... Carroll had 15 points ... The Hawks went 14-of-31 from 3-point range.
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