CLEVELAND — Trae Young scored 32 of his 38 points in the second half and the Atlanta Hawks overcame losing center Clint Capela to a knee injury to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 107-101 in the play-in on Friday night, earning the Eastern Conference’s No. 8 playoff seed.

Young started slowly for the second straight game, but “Ice Trae,” as he fancies himself, heated up when it mattered most.

The All-Star guard scored 16 points in third quarter to rally the Hawks from a 10-point halftime deficit, and added another 16 in the fourth to finish off the Cavs, whose inexperience showed throughout the second half.

Bogdan Bogdanovic added 19 points for Atlanta, which will play No. 1 seed Miami in the first round. Game 1 is Sunday in South Florida.

The Hawks, who made it to the conference finals a year ago, may have to go forward without Capela. The 6-foot-10 center hyperextended his right knee late in the first half, had to be helped from the floor and couldn’t return.

Lauri Markkanen scored 26 points and Darius Garland had 21 for the young Cavaliers, whose unexpected season fell just shy of a playoff berth.

Cleveland hasn’t been to the playoffs since 2018, and the Cavs haven’t been to the postseason without LeBron James on their roster since 1998.

Lifted by a rowdy, towel-waving crowd in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Cavs were in position to advance and played well in long stretches. However, Cleveland’s offense bogged down in the third quarter, and the Cavs had no answer defensively for Young.

As the final seconds ticked off, Young waved goodbye as the Cleveland crowd thinned out and headed to the exits.

Those who stayed saluted the Cavs, who weren’t expected to get this far after winning just 22 games last season. While they’ve been relegated to lottery picks and losing since James left after a four-year run to the NBA finals four years ago, the future in Cleveland is bright.

With the season on the line, Cleveland got a huge emotional and defensive lift by the return of All-Star center Jarrett Allen, who missed the previous 19 games because of a broken finger on his left hand. Allen finished with 11 points.

The Hawks were in big trouble late in the third quarter before Young finally heated up.

Ignoring some vulgar chants by Cleveland fans, the dazzling guard made a pair of 3-pointers and scored Atlanta’s final 12 points in the quarter as the Hawks closed with a 17-8 run over the final 3:48 to tie it 84-all going into to the final 12 minutes.

Markkanen made four 3-pointers and Cleveland hit six shots from long range in the first 12 minutes to open an 11-point lead.

Atlanta helped with some sloppy play and committed seven turnovers, four by Young. But once he started taking care of the ball and making shots, there was no stopping him.

NOTES

BULLS: Chicago will be without two assistant coaches for its playoff opener against the Milwaukee Bucks after Chris Fleming and Damian Cotter tested positive for COVID-19, Coach Billy Donovan said.

Donovan said the team found out Friday morning that Fleming – Chicago’s lead assistant – and Cotter tested positive. He said they were experiencing mild symptoms and will not travel to Milwaukee for Game 1 of the first-round series on Sunday.

Donovan was not sure how long they will be out. Game 2 is Wednesday in Milwaukee, with the best-of-seven series shifting to Chicago for Game 3 on April 22.

MAVERICKS: Luka Doncic reportedly will not play in the playoff opener Saturday against the Utah Jazz.

The Mavericks haven’t released a formal injury report, but ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Doncic will miss Game 1, and significant concern remains for the 23-year-old All-Star’s availability ahead of Monday night’s Game 2.

The Mavericks have remained hopeful about Doncic’s progress this week, but injury experts who spoke to The Dallas Morning News on Monday said minor Grade 1 calf strains require about seven to 10 days to heal, while more significant Grade 2 strains take weeks.

SUNS: Phoenix guard Landry Shamet didn’t practice Friday because of a left foot injury.

The Suns have the NBA’s best overall record and are preparing for the first round of the playoffs against either the Clippers or Pelicans. Shamet has been one of the team’s top players off the bench, averaging 8.3 points per game.

“Injuries are a part of it,” Suns Coach Monty Williams said. “We’re not sure the severity of it. He just didn’t practice today and that’s all we have to report. But we’re built for situations like this. … We just have to deal with stuff as it pops up.”

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