Clutch Game 7 effort sends Hawks into Eastern Conference finals matchup with Bucks

An NBA season that began with struggles and a coaching change continues to reverse course for the young, surging Atlanta Hawks.

Kevin Huerter scored a playoff career-high 27 points, Trae Young added 21 points and 10 assists and the fifth-seeded Hawks stunned No. 1 seed and host Philadelphia 76ers 103-96 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday. Atlanta is in the Eastern Conference finals for the second time in a 50-year span — the other was in 2015, when it was swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Before Sunday, the Hawks were 0-9 in Game 7s on the road.

“This team is special, man,” Huerter said in a post-game interview with TNT. “Everybody’s counted us out all year. For us to make it this far and win in this building in Game 7 is huge for us.”

The Hawks, who have turned the season around since Lloyd Pierce was fired and replaced by Nate McMillan, will face the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. Game 1 is Wednesday in Milwaukee (8:30 p.m./TNT).

Atlanta is four wins away from its first NBA Finals appearance since 1961, when the St. Louis Hawks fell to the Boston Celtics.

“It’s going to be fun,” Young said of the Bucks during a TNT interview. “They’re a talented team They’ve got a lot of guys on that side that can play. It’s going to be a fun battle. Both teams are locked in. It’s going to be fun.”

Young shot 5 of 23, but made a couple of clutch shots down the stretch.

John Collins had 14 points and 16 rebounds while Danilo Gallinari had 17 points and Clint Capela 13 for the Hawks, who won three games at Philadelphia in the series.

Joel Embiid led the top-seeded Sixers with 31 points and 11 rebounds yet committed eight turnovers. Tobias Harris added 24 points and 14 rebounds, Seth Curry had 16 points and Ben Simmons contributed 13 assists. Simmons had just five points and didn’t attempt a shot in the fourth quarter for the fourth straight game. The Sixers haven’t reached the conference finals since 2001.

The Hawks led 48-46 at halftime thanks in large part to Huerter’s 12 points. Young shot just 1 of 12 in the opening half.

“(Huerter’s) been doing that all year,” Young said. “He can really shoot the ball. He can really put the ball on the floor and get to his spots. He’s a tall guy at 6-7 who can really shoot over you. He can really do a lot. We needed all his points and his playmaking tonight.”

Embiid had 15 points but committed four turnovers and appeared to tweak his injured right knee shortly before halftime.

The game was tight throughout the third as the Hawks moved out to a 64-63 advantage with 4:45 left after a tough jumper by Huerter. He was fouled as well but missed the free throw. Matisse Thybulle scored four late points in the period, but the Hawks closed the third strong and led 76-71.

Embiid scored the first five points of the fourth — a jumper and a 3-pointer — to tie the game at 76 with 10:37 to go. The Hawks missed their first nine shots of the fourth but only trailed 81-77. Gallinari then connected on a trey to close the Hawks within one.

When Young drove to the basket and scored with 5:11 left, the Hawks took an 86-84 lead. Embiid responded with a jumper with 4:14 remaining to tie the game at 86. Young drained a deep 30-foot trey with 2:31 to go and the Hawks led 93-87.

The Sixers went on a 5-0 run to close within one with 1:09 remaining. Huerter was then fouled on a 3-pointer and dropped in all three for a 96-92 lead with 54 seconds left. Gallinari followed with a huge defensive play, stripping the ball from Embiid for a turnover. Huerter grabbed the loose ball and fired it ahead to a wide-open Gallinari, whose dunk put the Hawks up six in the clincher.

“Since Coach Mac came in, it’s really the head of the snake, he’s preached toughness, us getting into ballhandlers, believing in ourselves,” Huerter said of the turnaround season. “We’ve got a young locker room. We’re a little naive. We’re always believing. We always know we can win. We’ve just got to keep it going.”