Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore (24) celebrates with the fans as he leaves the court after defeating New Orleans Pelicans 94-93 during an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018, in Atlanta. Bazemore hit the game-winning shot in the final seconds of the game. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)ATLANTA (AP) – With a chance to win the game, Kent Bazemore wasn’t the first option for the Atlanta Hawks.
He wound up with the ball – and it worked out just fine.
Bazemore swished a jumper over Anthony Davis with 2.1 seconds remaining and the Hawks rallied from 19 points down to beat the New Orleans Pelicans 94-93 Wednesday, thrilling a sparse crowd on an icy night in Atlanta.
The Hawks wanted to go to Ersan Ilyasova in the corner, but the Pelicans thwarted that play. So Dennis Schroder passed instead to the 6-foot-5 Bazemore, who feigned a drive before pulling up from 18 feet to hit the shot against the 6-10 Davis.
“That’s one of my favorite moves,” Bazemore said. “It’s almost like you’re out there by yourself. You can’t worry that the guy defending you has like a 7-10 wing span. You’ve got to rise up and make the shot.”