Jalen Johnson had 31 points, 18 rebounds, 14 assists and seven steals, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a 132-122 victory over the Utah Jazz on Thursday nightSALT LAKE CITY — Jalen Johnson had 31 points, 18 rebounds, 14 assists and seven steals, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a 132-122 victory over the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. Johnson reached career highs in points and assists in his third career triple-double. Playing without Trae Young, the Hawks (8-5) have won four straight and made 24 3-pointers, the most by any NBA team this season. Onyeka Okongwu was 8 for 14 from 3-point range after never having made more than four in a game on his way to a career-high 32 points.The Hawks set a franchise record with 15 3-pointers in the first half on 25 attempts, led by Vit Krejci’s 5-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc. Krejci made one 3 in the second half and finished with 20 points.Lauri Markkanen scored 40 points on 15-for-25 shooting. Rookie Ace Bailey notched another career best with 21 points and Keyonte George added 19 for Utah (4-8), which has yet to post consecutive wins this season.Atlanta clinched the game with an 8-0 late run that included steals by Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker and was capped by Johnson’s two free throws to make it 127-118 with 3:03 to play.The Hawks led by as many as 18, but the Jazz mounted a comeback and took a 106-103 lead early in the fourth quarter on Markkanen’s 3-pointer.The Hawks have found success without many of their most important players. Young has missed two weeks with an MCL sprain and Kristaps Porzingis missed Thursday’s game to rest.Popular ReadsWithout a ball-dominant point guard, the Hawks are spreading the ball around and racking up the assists (36 in this one) while they continue to win with a diminished roster. The game was …
