NBA Playoffs 2021: Trae Young helps Atlanta Hawks push New York Knicks to brink of elimination

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Scott Rafferty
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The Atlanta Hawks are one win away from advancing to the second round for the first time since 2015-16.

Led by a game-high 27 points from Trae Young, the Hawks blew the New York Knicks out for the second game in a row to take a 3-1 series lead.

John Collins had his highest scoring game of the series with 22 points while Clint Capela recorded a 10-point, 15-rebound double-double. Julius Randle came close to a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, but he shot 7-for-19 from the field and committed five turnovers.

For more on the game, some takeaways at the buzzer...

1. Oh, that's cold

Young committed a couple of early turnovers in this one, but he made up for his second with his first steal and first 3-pointer of the game.

That's smooth.

2. Keep on swimming

After lighting the Knicks up from 3-point range in Game 3, the Hawks came back down to earth in Game 4, missing 10 of their first 11 3-point attempts.

Naturally, they then made four of their next five 3-point attempts, three of which came in a 90 second span.

Bogdan Bogdanovic nailed the first one, followed by Danilo Gallinari and Kevin Huerter.

That mini-run helped the Hawks rebound from a slow start and turned out to be a sign of what was to come.

3. A familiar story for the Knicks

The leading scorer for the Knicks at the half? Derrick Rose.

Starting in place of Elfrid Payton for the second game in a row, Rose had 16 points at the break on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 2-for-2 from 3-point range.

Rose went toe-to-toe with Young, who had 15 points following two quarters of play.

The only other player on the Knicks in double-digit scoring was Randle, although his 12 points came on 4-for-12 shooting.

In Randle's defence, he came out with his foot on the gas and did a better job of playmaking than his three assists would suggest. It was just a struggle offensively for everyone on the Knicks not named Rose in the first half, especially from the perimeter, where they went 4-for-14 as a team.

4. The beginning of the end

This game was decided in the third quarter.

Leading 53-49 at the half, the Hawks outscored the Knicks by 13 points in the third period to turn a four-point lead into a 17-point lead.

Young led the way for Atlanta with nine points in the quarter, three of which came following a wicked crossover that somehow didn't turn Reggie Bullock into dust.

Collins made his presence felt with seven points, although he had to exit the game because of a lip laceration that required stitches. (He returned to the game in the fourth).

Bogdanovic then rubbed salt in the wound with a tough 3-pointer over Alec Burks in the closing seconds, his second triple of the frame.

The Knicks were able to mount a big comeback in Game 2 to come away with the win, but this team lacks the offensive firepower to make that a regular occurance.

5. Heating up from deep

Remember how the Hawks started the game 1-for-11 from 3-point range? They ended up shooting 15-for-39 from the perimeter, so they went 14-for-28 following their ice-cold start.

They really do have shooters everywhere.

6. What's next

The series returns to New York for Game 5 on Wednesday, June 2 (ET).

With it potentially being the last game of the season for the Knicks, it's safe to assume that Madison Square Garden will be rocking.

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Scott Rafferty

Scott Rafferty is a Senior NBA Editor for The Sporting News