Still, they trailed just 65-61 in the final minute and appeared to have gotten a stop by forcing Thornton to miss a long 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down.
The Nets were ahead 24-21 after one quarter and led most of the second, but the Hawks took a 51-49 lead into halftime after DeShawn Stevenson made a desperation 3-pointer as the shot clock was set to expire with 9.8 seconds remaining before the break.
First he hit a pair of free throws, then knocked down a 3-pointer over Kenny Kadji with the shot clock winding down to push Duke to a 58-56 lead with 9:13 left.