ATLANTA — The Hawks had to lean on the experience of veteran point guard Jeff Teague in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s first-round game with the Celtics. They really didn’t have much choice.
With backup point guard Dennis Schroder ineffective and the momentum of a 19-point lead quickly leaking away, Teague was needed to restore order and settle things down.
Teague responded by playing 36-plus minutes, including the entire fourth quarter, and helped the Hawks turn away Boston’s second-half comeback.
Teague scored 23 points on 7-for-15 shooting and had 12 assists. He was 9 for 11 from the free throw line, including a pair with 5.2 seconds that gave the Hawks a 4-point lead. He has scored 20 or more in five of the last six games.
“I thought Jeff was really playing well — and Al [Horford] — so we rode those guys a little bit longer, a little more,’’ Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said.
With 30.9 seconds left in the third quarter, Budenholzer had seen enough of Schroder. A minute earlier, Schroder had a shot blocked by the Celtics’ Amir Johnson and had been out of synch most of the game. Instead of waiting for the end of the quarter, the coach yanked Schroder and opted to use Teague for the rest of the game.
“The bench has been good for us all year,’’ Budenholzer said. “Some of it is the playoffs. It’s somewhat new, understanding how physical you’ve got to be on every play.’’
Teague had 9 points, 4 assists, and 1 steal in the fourth quarter. And when Celtics guard Avery Bradley injured his right hamstring with 6:42 left to play, Teague kicked his game up to another level.
“He’s an aggressive defender,’’ Teague said. “The fourth quarter you just try to be aggressive and make some plays.’’
Teague was in the center of the team’s crucial stretch in the final four minutes
With the game tied, 88-88, Teague passed to Horford on a pick-and-roll with 3:26 left to put Atlanta ahead to stay.
Teague then stole the ball from Johnson and set up Paul Millsap for a slam to complete a fast break and put the Hawks ahead, 92-88.
After the Celtics pulled to within 2 on a pair of free throws by Isaiah Thomas, Teague drove the lane and dropped in a layup to restore the 4-point lead.
“I felt like Jeff was in attack mode most of the night,’’ Budenholzer said. “Avery Bradley is a very good perimeter defender, so without him Jeff may have gotten a little more aggressive. There were some situations where he can get to the basket or find guys who are open and play a two-man game with him and Al or him and Paul.’’
It was the second straight meeting in which the Celtics had trouble slowing Teague. He had 24 points and seven assists against them April 9 after totaling only 28 points in the three previous meetings.
“It’s always good to get the first one,’’ Teague said. “It was a grind-it-out kind of game. It’s always fun at this time. The energy in the building was amazing and you always want to go out and put up your best fight.’’
The Hawks will likely need more out of Schroder, who averages 11 points in 20 minutes. But the third-year player averaged only 6.8 points in the final five regular-season games and failed to score in one of those.
Schroder played 11:28 in Game 1 and failed to score. He was 0 for 6 from the floor and missed both his 3-pointers. Schroder had a turnover and committed two fouls in his limited time.
Budenholzer said, “Dennis is going to continue to be aggressive. I tell our guys to come out with a defensive mind-set and have a great impact on the game defensively and the other end will take care of itself. He’s a very confident young man. We’re confident he’ll play well and give us great minutes off the bench.’’
