Even when most of their roster was healthy, the Orlando Magic struggled recently against the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks had won nine of the teams’ previous 11 regular-season and postseason games entering their matchup Friday night — and Dwight Howard had played in all of those games.

Things turned ugly without Howard on Friday.

In what could be a preview of the remainder of Orlando’s season now that Howard has been diagnosed with a herniated disk in his lower back, the Hawks dominated the Magic 109-81 at Amway Center.

Nothing worked for Orlando. Not the offense. And especially not the defense, which allowed the Hawks to make 75 percent of their shots in the first quarter and just over 50 percent of their shots for the entire game.

“It was a very, very poor defensive effort,” coach Stan Van Gundy said.

“I just told ‘em after the game, ‘Run back.’ I was really, really upset, especially with our starters in the first quarter. [They] just did not bring anything to that game in what we needed, and I told them that. We didn’t run back. We didn’t get matched up. They got too many easy shots. There was no excuse for what happened in that first quarter.”

Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Marvin Williams finished with 16 points apiece. Reserve point guard Jannero Pargo scored a game-high 17 points.

“We just didn’t do anything right tonight,” Magic wing Jason Richardson said. “No excuses.”

Glen Davis, who replaced Howard in the Magic lineup, scored 16 points on 8-of-13 shooting and added nine rebounds.

The Magic (34-25) need to find some traction — and quickly.

They lead the seventh-place New York Knicks and the eighth-place Philadelphia 76ers by three games and hold a 5½-game lead over the ninth-place Milwaukee Bucks.

The Magic showed decent effort at times against the Hawks (35-24).

On one sequence in the first quarter, Davis delivered a bone-crunching screen to Smith that sent the 6-foot-9, 225-pound Smith to Amway Center’s parquet floor.

A few seconds later, Richardson sprinted down the court to block Zaza Pachulia’s layup attempt on a fastbreak. Richardson grabbed the ball, passed it ahead to Von Wafer, who sent it to Davis for a fastbreak layup. The score cut Atlanta’s lead to 25-20.

But the Hawks would finish the first period 15 for 20 from the field.

“We didn’t let up because Dwight wasn’t playing,” Smith said.

Atlanta’s shooters cooled off in the second quarter, shooting just 37 percent, but the Hawks maintained their momentum because the Magic shot only 32 percent from the field.

It was a rotten first half.

Quentin Richardson’s face absorbed what appeared to be an accidental left forearm from Pachulia as they both went for a loose ball with 4:53 remaining in the half. Richardson looked dazed, left the court with athletic trainer Keon Weise and did not return to the game.

Late in the half, Van Gundy received his first technical foul of the season. With Orlando trailing 61-42, a referee whistled Wafer for a questionable offensive foul after Wafer simply appeared to take a baseline jumper.

Van Gundy complained, and those gripes generated the technical.

The Hawks finished the half with 62 points — the highest point total for a Magic opponent in a first half this season and just one point shy of the highest point total by a Magic opponent in any half this season.

“They give us problems with or without Dwight,” Jason Richardson said.

True.

But without Howard, those problems were even more severe.

jbrobbins@tribune.com. Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/magicblog. Subscribe to our Orlando Magic newsletter at OrlandoSentinel.com/joinus.

Even when most of their roster was healthy, the Orlando Magic struggled recently against the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks had won nine of the teams’ previous 11 regular-season and postseason games entering their matchup Friday night — and Dwight Howard had played in all of those games.

Things turned ugly without Howard on Friday.

In what could be a preview of the remainder of Orlando’s season now that Howard has been diagnosed with a herniated disk in his lower back, the Hawks dominated the Magic 109-81 at Amway Center.

Nothing worked for Orlando. Not the offense. And especially not the defense, which allowed the Hawks to make 75 percent of their shots in the first quarter and just over 50 percent of their shots for the entire game.

“It was a very, very poor defensive effort,” coach Stan Van Gundy said.

“I just told ‘em after the game, ‘Run back.’ I was really, really upset, especially with our starters in the first quarter. [They] just did not bring anything to that game in what we needed, and I told them that. We didn’t run back. We didn’t get matched up. They got too many easy shots. There was no excuse for what happened in that first quarter.”

Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Marvin Williams finished with 16 points apiece. Reserve point guard Jannero Pargo scored a game-high 17 points.

“We just didn’t do anything right tonight,” Magic wing Jason Richardson said. “No excuses.”

Glen Davis, who replaced Howard in the Magic lineup, scored 16 points on 8-of-13 shooting and added nine rebounds.

The Magic (34-25) need to find some traction — and quickly.

They lead the seventh-place New York Knicks and the eighth-place Philadelphia 76ers by three games and hold a 5½-game lead over the ninth-place Milwaukee Bucks.

The Magic showed decent effort at times against the Hawks (35-24).

On one sequence in the first quarter, Davis delivered a bone-crunching screen to Smith that sent the 6-foot-9, 225-pound Smith to Amway Center’s parquet floor.

A few seconds later, Richardson sprinted down the court to block Zaza Pachulia’s layup attempt on a fastbreak. Richardson grabbed the ball, passed it ahead to Von Wafer, who sent it to Davis for a fastbreak layup. The score cut Atlanta’s lead to 25-20.

But the Hawks would finish the first period 15 for 20 from the field.

“We didn’t let up because Dwight wasn’t playing,” Smith said.

Atlanta’s shooters cooled off in the second quarter, shooting just 37 percent, but the Hawks maintained their momentum because the Magic shot only 32 percent from the field.

It was a rotten first half.

Quentin Richardson’s face absorbed what appeared to be an accidental left forearm from Pachulia as they both went for a loose ball with 4:53 remaining in the half. Richardson looked dazed, left the court with athletic trainer Keon Weise and did not return to the game.

Late in the half, Van Gundy received his first technical foul of the season. With Orlando trailing 61-42, a referee whistled Wafer for a questionable offensive foul after Wafer simply appeared to take a baseline jumper.

Van Gundy complained, and those gripes generated the technical.

The Hawks finished the half with 62 points — the highest point total for a Magic opponent in a first half this season and just one point shy of the highest point total by a Magic opponent in any half this season.

“They give us problems with or without Dwight,” Jason Richardson said.

True.

But without Howard, those problems were even more severe.

jbrobbins@tribune.com. Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/magicblog. Subscribe to our Orlando Magic newsletter at OrlandoSentinel.com/joinus.

Hawks-Celtics Preview

By JEFF MEZYDLO

STATS Senior Writer

(AP) — There are still two weeks left in the regular season, but the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks are rounding into playoff form.

With each team trying for a fourth consecutive victory, the Celtics look to continue their recent success over the Hawks on Wednesday night in this potential playoff preview.

Despite an aging core group of stars, Boston (33-24) has won 18 of 25 and leads the Atlantic Division by three games while sitting fourth in the Eastern Conference.

“It took a while,” All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo said, “but we’re peaking at the right time.”

Because of their division lead, the Celtics are just ahead of fifth-place Atlanta (34-23) in the conference. The Hawks have won 10 of 14.

“We’re already in playoff mode,” Atlanta rookie forward Ivan Johnson said.

Boston has won three of four against the Hawks, including 79-76 at Atlanta on March 19 in the only meeting this season. Ray Allen scored 19 points while Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett combined for 29 as the Celtics prevailed in a game where both clubs failed to shoot 40 percent.

Pierce scored 27 points, Garnett had 24 and Rondo added 18 with 15 assists as Boston shot a season-high 60.6 percent Tuesday while beating Miami for the second time in 10 days, 115-107.

“When they shoot like that, it’s going to be tough to beat them,” Heat star Dwyane Wade said.

Boston averages 91.9 points but has topped 100 in each of the last two games while shooting 59.7 percent.

“When you’ve got it going like that, just tip your hat off. We tip our hat off to them,” LeBron James said of the Celtics.

Pierce has averaged 22.6 points on 48.7 percent shooting in the last 12 games while Garnett has totaled 44 and gone 19 of 25 from the field in the last two.

Though Boston has played well overall and held Atlanta to an average of 82.5 points on 39.6 percent shooting in the last four meetings, the Hawks are a confident group. Despite having injured center Al Horford for 11 games, Atlanta remains in the hunt for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

“Looking at where we are and looking at what happened from an injury standpoint, I think we’re very fortunate to be in the position we’re in,” coach Larry Drew said.

Atlanta has averaged 112.3 points over the past three games, beating Charlotte twice and Detroit by an average of 17.3 points.

“We can’t have any mental letdowns,” Drew said. “Here we are with nine games to go and we’ve shown that we can be a pretty good ballclub. But any coach is looking for that consistency heading down the stretch. This is no time to let up and to not finish the regular season on a strong note so we can carry some momentum into the playoffs.”

Joe Johnson scored 18 points and Zaza Pachulia added 12 with 16 rebounds as eight Hawks scored in double figures during Saturday’s 116-96 win in Charlotte.

Pachulia, starting in place of Horford, has averaged 15.5 points and 11.5 rebounds in the last two games against the Celtics.

Updated April 11, 2012

There are still two weeks left in the regular season, but the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks are rounding into playoff form.

With each team trying for a fourth consecutive victory, the Celtics look to continue their recent success over the Hawks on Wednesday night in this potential playoff preview.

Despite an aging core group of stars, Boston (33-24) has won 18 of 25 and leads the Atlantic Division by three games while sitting fourth in the Eastern Conference.

“It took a while,” All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo said, “but we’re peaking at the right time.”

Because of their division lead, the Celtics are just ahead of fifth-place Atlanta (34-23) in the conference. The Hawks have won 10 of 14.

“We’re already in playoff mode,” Atlanta rookie forward Ivan Johnson said.

Boston has won three of four against the Hawks, including 79-76 at Atlanta on March 19 in the only meeting this season. Ray Allen scored 19 points while Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett combined for 29 as the Celtics prevailed in a game where both clubs failed to shoot 40 percent.

Pierce scored 27 points, Garnett had 24 and Rondo added 18 with 15 assists as Boston shot a season-high 60.6 percent Tuesday while beating Miami for the second time in 10 days, 115-107.

“When they shoot like that, it’s going to be tough to beat them,” Heat star Dwyane Wade said.

Boston averages 91.9 points but has topped 100 in each of the last two games while shooting 59.7 percent.

“When you’ve got it going like that, just tip your hat off. We tip our hat off to them,” LeBron James said of the Celtics.

Pierce has averaged 22.6 points on 48.7 percent shooting in the last 12 games while Garnett has totaled 44 and gone 19 of 25 from the field in the last two.

Though Boston has played well overall and held Atlanta to an average of 82.5 points on 39.6 percent shooting in the last four meetings, the Hawks are a confident group. Despite having injured center Al Horford for 11 games, Atlanta remains in the hunt for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

“Looking at where we are and looking at what happened from an injury standpoint, I think we’re very fortunate to be in the position we’re in,” coach Larry Drew said.

Atlanta has averaged 112.3 points over the past three games, beating Charlotte twice and Detroit by an average of 17.3 points.

“We can’t have any mental letdowns,” Drew said. “Here we are with nine games to go and we’ve shown that we can be a pretty good ballclub. But any coach is looking for that consistency heading down the stretch. This is no time to let up and to not finish the regular season on a strong note so we can carry some momentum into the playoffs.”

Joe Johnson scored 18 points and Zaza Pachulia added 12 with 16 rebounds as eight Hawks scored in double figures during Saturday’s 116-96 win in Charlotte.

Pachulia, starting in place of Horford, has averaged 15.5 points and 11.5 rebounds in the last two games against the Celtics.

by

The Associated Press

Associated Press

Atlanta Hawks’ Joe Johnson, right, plays against Charlotte Bobcats’ Gerald Henderson, in an NBA basketball game Wednesday, April 4, 2012, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Joe Johnson scored 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting, and eight Atlanta players scored in double digits in the Hawks’ 116-96 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night.

The Hawks broke open the game in the third quarter by shooting 17 of 23 from the field while scoring a season-high 38 points. They won their third straight and remained in second place in the Southeast Division, ahead of the struggling Orlando Magic.

Zaza Pachulia had 12 points and 16 rebounds, while Jannero Pargo had 15 points and nine assists for the Hawks. Ivan Johnson added 17 points.

Corey Higgins, the son of Charlotte president of basketball operations Rod Higgins, scored a career-high 22 points for the Bobcats, who’ve lost 11 straight.

The Bobcats need to win three of their remaining 12 games to reach the 10-win plateau.

Atlanta (34-23) currently owns the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference.

The Hawks scored 56 points in the paint and outrebounded the Bobcats 42-31.

The Bobcats jumped out to a 23-19 lead in the first quarter behind nine early points from Byron Mullens, who carried over the momentum early on from his career-high, 31-point effort Friday night against the Milwaukee Bucks.

But the Hawks began to take over in the second quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 29-13 to take a 12-point lead at halftime behind solid play off the bench from Pargo, Marvin Williams, Ivan Johnson and Willie Green. The reserves played so well that coach Larry Drew stuck with them for most of the second quarter.

The third quarter has been a trouble spot for the Bobcats all season and it stung them again.

The Hawks went on a 12-2 run to open the second half to quickly build a 22-point lead. They hit 11 of their first 12 shots from the field in the period, many of those on uncontested layups.

The Bobcats fought back to trim the lead to 12 in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t close the gap any further.

NOTES: The Bobcats were without guards D.J. Augustin, and Reggie Williams, as well as forward Eduardo Najera. Najera had surgery Saturday to repair a frontal bone fracture and coach Paul Silas says he’s not expected to play for the remainder of the season.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Atlanta Hawks coach Larry Drew likes his team’s focus as it makes a final push toward the playoffs.

The Hawks, who are a half-game behind Indiana in the race for the third seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, got 18 points from Joe Johnson on 8-of-10 shooting and 57 points from their bench to beat the Charlotte Bobcats 116-96 on Saturday night.

Although the Hawks stumbled out of the gates in the first quarter Saturday night, they regrouped and took care of business against the NBA-worst Bobcats by scoring a season-high 68 points in the second half.

”We can’t have any mental letdowns,” Drew said, looking ahead to the final nine regular-season games. ”Here we are with nine games to go and we’ve shown that we can be a pretty good ballclub. But any coach is looking for that consistency heading down the stretch. This is no time to let up and to not finish the regular season on a strong note so we can carry some momentum into the playoffs.”

Zaza Pachulia had 12 points and 16 rebounds for the Hawks, while Jannero Pargo had 15 points and nine assists and Ivan Johnson added 17 points off the bench.

The Hawks have overcome their fair share of adversity and appear to be on the right path.

”I’m real happy about it,” Drew said, ”considering what we’ve gone through this season and looking at the stretches of the road games and the injuries. We’ve weathered a major storm. There’s some games we felt we should’ve won that we let slip through the cracks. But still, looking at where we are and looking at what happened from an injury standpoint, I think we’re very fortunate to be in the position we’re in.”

Said Ivan Johnson: ”We’re already in playoff mode.”

The Hawks broke open the game in the third quarter by shooting 17 of 23 from the field while scoring a season-high 38 points. They won their third straight and remained in second place in the Southeast Division, ahead of the struggling Orlando Magic.

”We’ve faced a lot of adversity and a grueling schedule,” said Josh Smith, who had 15 points. ”We have persevered with a big injury to a major guy who impacts this basketball team in so many ways in Al Horford. We’ve fought through that and guys have come in and stepped up and contributed big minutes.”

The Hawks scored 56 points in the paint and outrebounded the Bobcats 42-31.

The Bobcats jumped out to a 23-19 lead in the first quarter behind nine early points from Byron Mullens, who carried over the momentum early on from his career-high, 31-point effort Friday night against the Milwaukee Bucks.

But the Hawks began to take over in the second quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 29-13 to take a 12-point lead at halftime behind solid play off the bench from Pargo, Ivan Johnson, Marvin Williams and Willie Green. The reserves played so well that Drew stuck with them for the entire second quarter.

”We know we have to get in and get to work real fast so we can get as many minutes as we can,” Ivan Johnson said.

The third quarter again proved to be the undoing for the Bobcats (7-47), who lost their 11th straight.

The Hawks went on a 12-2 run to open the second half to quickly build a 22-point lead. They hit 11 of their first 12 shots from the field in the period, many of those on uncontested layups. The Bobcats fought back to trim the lead to 12 in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t close the gap any further.

Rookie Cory Higgins, the son of Charlotte president of basketball operations Rod Higgins, scored a career-high 22 points for the Bobcats.

”You always want to win but it felt great to get some extended minutes and show what I can do,” Higgins said. ”The next step is trying to get everybody involved at the same point. Once I figure out the right balance, I’ll be all right.”

Higgins saw extended action because starting point guard D.J. Augustin did not play because of a knee ailment.

The Bobcats need to win three of their remaining 12 games to reach the 10-win plateau.

”Cory played well, executed the offense and did a very good job for us tonight,” Bobcats coach Paul Silas said. ”We’re a very young club and not as experienced as that Atlanta club is, but we still tried to hang in there. I’ll give them credit for that.”

NOTES: The Bobcats were without guards Augustin and Reggie Williams, as well as forward Eduardo Najera. Najera had surgery Saturday to repair a frontal bone fracture and Silas says he’s not expected to play for the remainder of the season. … Pargo’s nine assists tied a career high.

ATLANTA — Lucky number seven wasn’t quite in the works for the Jazz Sunday night in Atlanta. Utah (26-23) saw seven of its players score in double figures in a 139-133 quadruple-overtime defeat against Atlanta (30-20).

Guards: Just one game removed from having arguably his best game of the season, Devin Harris left a lot to be desired in Georgia after shooting just 4-18 from the field. However, C.J. Miles’ 17 points means that the seventh-year swingman has scored in double figures in three of the past four games. Hawk point guard Jeff Teague was limited to 4-14 shooting, though he made 10-11 from the charity and had nine assists, 4.5 above his average. GRADE: C

Forwards: Like most NBA forwards, starters Gordon Hayward and Paul Millsap had difficulty keeping up with athletes Joe Johnson and Josh Smith. The Atlanta stars inflicted major hurt, combining for 59 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists. Millsap’s 25 points and 13 rebounds were a measure toward providing an equalizer — before fouling out — but Hayward shot just 4-15 from the field. GRADE: C+

Centers: It only took Al Jefferson 27 shot attempts to score 28 points, though he was out-dueled by Zaza Pachulia on the glass, 20-17. Jefferson’s rebound tally marked his highest total for the season, though Pachulia’s tally certainly exceeded his 7.4 per-game average. GRADE: B+

Bench: The Atlanta bench out-scored Utah’s 33-27 and was key in the final overtime, when Burks and Favors entered the game in place of Millsap and Jefferson, with both fouling out. With 10 points and five rebounds, Alec Burks once again provided solid minutes. Burks has now scored in double figures in five of the past eight contests. Derrick Favors’ 14 points means that the big 20-year-old has now registered double figures in six of the past eight games. Jamaal Tinsley’s 13 minutes were nothing that Earl Watson couldn’t have provided. GRADE: B

Overall: The Jazz couldn’t have much better momentum on their side had they been able to win their third straight win away from the friendly confines they find in Salt Lake City. A 39 percent shooting display didn’t help. Sunday evening’s contest marks one of those games that might have catapulted the team to another few wins in a row. That’s no guarantee after a tough defeat. GRADE: B-

Rhett Wilkinson is a journalism and political science major at Utah State University. He has previously been an intern for the Deseret News. He can be reached at rhett.wilkinson@yahoo.com or at Twitter: wilklogan.

Read More: Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks

The Boston Celtics visited the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night hoping to stem a losing streak at two games and solidify their spot above the Eastern Conference cutoff line for the playoffs. It was far from pretty, but they ultimately did just that, holding off the Hawks, 79-76, for a much-needed win.

The Hawks were up one point heading into the fourth quarter, 51-50, in what had been a defensive slugfest up to that point. Then the Celtics heated up while the Hawks remained stagnant. Boston scored 29 points in the first quarter, at one point burying 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions.

Then things got a little crazy. Atlanta took over nine minutes to finally surpass 10 points for the quarter. Then they went on a 16-2 run over the next 2:50 to pull within one point, 77-76, with 10 seconds on the clock. Zaza Pachulia scored seven points and Joe Johnson buried three 3-point jumpers to turn an easy Celtics win into an impromptu nailbiter.

Mickael Pietrus and Paul Pierce both went 1-for-2 from the free throw line in the final 30 seconds to let the Hawks back in the game. Luckily, Ray Allen hit both of his attempts from the line to give the Celts a late 79-76 lead. The Hawks were able to get Jeff Teague a wide open look for the tie, but he airballed the 3-point equalizer badly:

Allen led the Celtics with 19 points on the night. He hit two 3-pointers and the two late free throws for eight points in the fourth quarter. Rajon Rondo recorded yet another double-double with 13 assists and 10 points, though he shot just 4-for-14 from the field. Pierce also struggled mightily, going 4-for-14 for the night. He was the only Celtics’ starter to finish with a negative plus/minus rating.

Johnson had 14 points in the fourth quarter to finish with a Hawks-leading 25 on 9-for-17 shooting (4-for-5 from beyond the arc). Pachulia had 16 points and 13 rebounds on the night. Unfortunately, there was little offense to be found elsewhere. Josh Smith was the only other Atlanta player to hit double-digits, scoring 10 points. He went 5-for-20 from the field to get there, however. Atlanta shot 38.7 percent for the game, which was only marginally worse than the Celtics’ 39.2 percent.

For more Celtics and Hawks coverage, visit the SB Nation blogs CelticsBlog and Peachtree Hoops.

Joe Johnson scored 28 points and the short-handed Atlanta Hawks rolled to a 103-87 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.

Atlanta had only 10 players available, but took an early lead that it never relinquished.

The Hawks built a 19-point lead midway through the third quarter and answered Cleveland’s only run late in the period to win going away.

Alonzo Gee matched a career high with 20 points to lead Cleveland, which has lost three straight. Rookie Kyrie Irving scored 19 points and had 10 assists for his first career double-double.

Atlanta extended its winning streak over Cleveland to six games. Jeff Teague added 18 points for the Hawks and Kirk Hinrich scored 14.

Atlanta shot 55 percent in the first quarter with Johnson scoring 13 points. The Hawks continued their hot shooting in the second quarter, hitting 13 of 21 shots, to build a 59-45 halftime lead.

Cleveland, playing its first game since trading guard Ramon Sessions to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday, struggled on both ends of the floor. Atlanta shot 50.6 percent from the field while Cleveland hit 39.3 of its shots.

Atlanta’s biggest lead came at 69-50 before the Cavaliers got back in the game with an 18-5 run that cut the lead to 74-68. Johnson scored at the end of the third quarter and started the fourth with another basket to begin an 8-0 run.

Injuries and illness left the Hawks with a thin roster. Forward Vladimir Radmanovic missed the game with a back injury sustained in Friday’s win over Washington. Forward Marvin Williams (hip flexor), shooting guard Willie Green (hamstring) and point guard Jannero Pargo (stomach virus) were also out.

Williams’ injury has forced coach Larry Drew to use a starting lineup that features Johnson, a six-time All-Star at shooting guard, playing small forward. Teague and Hinrich startedin the backcourt to go with power forward Josh Smith, and center Zaza Pachulia.

Smith scored seven points, hitting 3 of 15 from the field, but had eight rebounds and nine assists.

Rookie Tristan Thompson, the No. 4 pick in the draft, made his first NBA start at center. Thompson is a natural power forward, but Scott hasn’t been pleased with the play of Ryan Hollins and Semih Erden at center. Thompson scored seven points and had six rebounds in 35 minutes.

Antawn Jamison scored 17 points for the Cavaliers, but was 6 for 22 from the field.

NOTES: C Jason Collins, who missed the previous 21 games with a sprained left elbow, played the final three minutes. … Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said C Anderson Varejao (right wrist fracture) will be evaluated by the team’s medical staff this week. Varejao has been sidelined since Feb. 11. … F Luke Walton, acquired in the trade with the Lakers, dressed but didn’t play. He appeared in only nine games with Los Angeles. Walton has been bothered by a back injury most of the season and has recently had gastroenteritis.

Read More: Los Angeles Clippers, Atlanta Hawks

The Los Angeles Clippers were fully in command for all four quarters against the Atlanta Hawks, winning each quarter in a pretty strong 14 point victory. Mo Williams kept his hot shooting going off the bench with a 25 point performance on 9-18 shooting, keeping Atlanta at arm’s length for most of the game.

Eric Bledsoe chipped in with 14 points and four steals, Chris Paul put in 13 points and nine assists, and Blake Griffin had a quiet double-double of 12 points and ten rebounds. The Clippers shot 54% from the field and hit half their three pointers, holding the Hawks to 42% from the field overall as well as 32% three point shooting. Atlanta was led by Joe Johnson with 19 points and Josh Smith with 18.

To discuss the game with Clippers fans, head on over to Clips Nation. To talk about the game with Hawks fans, go to Peachtree Hoops.

Tayshaun Prince made a driving left-handed shot with 24.3 seconds remaining, and the Detroit Pistons held on to beat the Atlanta Hawks 86-85 on Friday night.

Detroit wasted a 12-point fourth-quarter lead and trailed by one after Jeff Teague’s layup with 36.6 seconds to play, but Prince answered and Atlanta’s Joe Johnson missed a contested shot from the left corner in the final seconds.

Josh Smith came up with the rebound for the Hawks and sank a fadeaway that was immediately waived off for coming after the buzzer. The call was upheld after a video review.

Greg Monroe scored 20 points and Jason Maxiell added 19 for Detroit. Smith led the Hawks with 21 and Johnson scored 18 in his first game back after missing four with left knee tendinitis.

In late January, the Pistons blew a six-point lead with less than 40 seconds remaining against the Hawks and lost in overtime.

They nearly wasted a terrific defensive performance in the second half Friday, but Prince was able to connect on his shot from about 7 feet in the final minute.

The Hawks made their first nine shots of the game and led 50-41 at halftime after Teague blocked Monroe under the basket to end the second quarter.

The Detroit big man quickly returned the favor in the third, stuffing the 6-foot-2 Teague when the Atlanta guard tried to drive to the basket. The Pistons held Atlanta to 12 points and only two field goals in the quarter and took a 67-62 lead into the fourth.

It was 75-63 after a perimeter shot by Jonas Jerebko, but the Hawks chipped away. Atlanta cut the lead to two on a 3-pointer by Smith, but Maxiell jumped high to dunk home a miss by Prince with one hand, making it 84-80.

Maxiell went 9 of 11 from the field and added 12 rebounds. Monroe was 10 of 14.

With the Pistons clinging to an 84-83 lead, Prince missed. Monroe came up with the ball but quickly lost it, and Teague went the other way for a layup, forcing Detroit to score one more basket for the win.

Prince scored 17 points and Rodney Stuckey had 11 for the Pistons. Jerebko added 10.

Marvin Williams scored 16 points for Atlanta.

NOTES: Detroit’s Charlie Villanueva was active but did not play. He’s been out since Jan. 4 because of a right ankle problem. … Atlanta was playing the third game of a six-game road trip. … The Pistons shot 56 percent from the field, but turned the ball over 20 times.

ATLANTA — Josh Smith came up big when the Atlanta Hawks needed him.

Playing to the crowd and energizing his teammates as leading scorer Joe Johnson watched the game with an injured knee, Smith knew his performance was the reason Atlanta held off hard-charging Oklahoma City.

“I’m an emotional guy,” he said. “I’m the emotional leader of this basketball team and whenever we can make some defensive stops and put them together, that definitely has to get you fired up.”

Smith scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, Jeff Teague added 16 points and the Atlanta Hawks snapped the Thunder’s seven-game winning streak with a 97-90 victory on Saturday night.

Kevin Durant finished with 35 points, going 14 of 17 on free throw attempts, and Russell Westbrook had 25 points for league-best Oklahoma City.

Smith, who matched a season-high in scoring and pulled down seven of his 12 rebounds in the fourth, had dunks on consecutive possessions to give the Hawks an 87-79 lead with 4:43 remaining.

Then, after forcing Durant to commit a turnover and pounding his first against his own chest with 3:04 left, Smith matched Durant’s 3-pointer to put Atlanta up 92-88 at the 2-minute mark.

One minute later, Smith drove past Ibaka on the right side and rolled in a left-handed hook to make it 95-90. His efforts helped the Hawks win their second straight.

“I was just real focused,” Smith said. “I wanted to be the guy to try to will us to win this game. I was able to find some cracks in their defense and put the ball in the hole.”

The Thunder, looking to reach eight straight wins for the first time since February 2010, briefly rallied from their biggest deficit, 11 points on two free throws by Williams at the 2:15 mark of the second quarter, when Cole Aldrich’s two free throws put Oklahoma City up 71-70 near the end of the third.

“When they grabbed that lead, we knew we still were in the ballgame,” Smith said. “We didn’t want to hang our heads and have bad body language. We were able to come out and play a good basketball game tonight.”

Durant missed four of his first five shots from the field before faking out Marvin Williams at the top of the key and hitting a 3-pointer that cut the lead to 51-45 in the final seconds of the first half.

The Thunder dropped to 8-2 against the Eastern Conference. Not surprisingly, Oklahoma City, which leads the NBA with an average of 16.9 turnovers, couldn’t overcome 21 miscues that led to 22 Atlanta points.

“We’ve got to fix it,” Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. “We keep talking about it. We’re working on it. But we’ve got to figure out that because it’s going to be hard to win night in, night out the way we turn it over. We’re an attack team. We’re an aggressive team. I understand that, but we still have to be solid with our decisions. It’s unacceptable having 20 turnovers in an NBA game.”

Durant, the MVP of last Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game, was just 3 of 10 from the field in the final period, launching missed 3s at the end to try and keep the score close.

CBSSports.com wire reports
March 3, 2012

ATLANTA – Josh Smith came up big when the Atlanta Hawks needed him.

Playing to the crowd and energizing his teammates as leading scorer Joe Johnson watched the game with an injured knee, Smith knew his performance was the reason Atlanta held off hard-charging Oklahoma City.

“I’m an emotional guy,” he said. “I’m the emotional leader of this basketball team and whenever we can make some defensive stops and put them together, that definitely has to get you fired up.”

Smith scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, Jeff Teague added 16 points and the Atlanta Hawks snapped the Thunder’s seven-game winning streak with a 97-90 victory on Saturday night.

Kevin Durant finished with 35 points, going 14 of 17 on free throw attempts, and Russell Westbrook had 25 points for league-best Oklahoma City.

Smith, who matched a season-high in scoring and pulled down seven of his 12 rebounds in the fourth, had dunks on consecutive possessions to give the Hawks an 87-79 lead with 4:43 remaining.

Then, after forcing Durant to commit a turnover and pounding his first against his own chest with 3:04 left, Smith matched Durant’s 3-pointer to put Atlanta up 92-88 at the 2-minute mark.

One minute later, Smith drove past Serge Ibaka on the right side and rolled in a left-handed hook to make it 95-90. His efforts helped the Hawks win their second straight.

“I was just real focused,” Smith said. “I wanted to be the guy to try to will us to win this game. I was able to find some cracks in their defense and put the ball in the hole.”

The Thunder, looking to reach eight straight wins for the first time since February 2010, briefly rallied from their biggest deficit, 11 points on two free throws by Williams at the 2:15 mark of the second quarter, when Cole Aldrich’s two free throws put Oklahoma City up 71-70 near the end of the third.

“When they grabbed that lead, we knew we still were in the ballgame,” Smith said. “We didn’t want to hang our heads and have bad body language. We were able to come out and play a good basketball game tonight.”

Durant missed four of his first five shots from the field before faking out Marvin Williams at the top of the key and hitting a 3-pointer that cut the lead to 51-45 in the final seconds of the first half.

The Thunder dropped to 8-2 against the Eastern Conference. Not surprisingly, Oklahoma City, which leads the NBA with an average of 16.9 turnovers, couldn’t overcome 21 miscues that led to 22 Atlanta points.

“We’ve got to fix it,” Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. “We keep talking about it. We’re working on it. But we’ve got to figure out that because it’s going to be hard to win night in, night out the way we turn it over. We’re an attack team. We’re an aggressive team. I understand that, but we still have to be solid with our decisions. It’s unacceptable having 20 turnovers in an NBA game.”

Durant, the MVP of last Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game, was just 3 of 10 from the field in the final period, launching missed 3s at the end to try and keep the score close.

“We’ve won so many games down the stretch, and to lose this one, it’s tough, but it’s the luck of the draw, man,” Durant said. “We’ve got to move on.”

As Johnson missed his second straight game and fifth of the last six with left knee tendinitis, Kirk Hinrich and Zaza Pachulia help fill the offensive void by each scoring 10 points. Pachulia also had 14 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season.

“The Hawks played hungry tonight even though they were down some guys,” Brooks said. “They fought us for four quarters.”

Nobody competed harder than Smith, who was coming off a 24-point, 19-rebound effort the night before against Milwaukee.

“We need him to be that impact player, particularly with his energy,” Atlanta coach Larry Drew said. ” We can feed off his energy. When’s playing like that, you can see the rest of the guys step their level of play up.”

Notes

• Westbrook played with a protective sleeve on his left ankle, which he slightly sprained in Thursday’s three-point win over Orlando.
• Oklahoma City C Kendrick Perkins had two points and five rebounds in 16 minutes before fouling out with 4:09 remaining.
• A second Thunder starter, G Daequan Cook, did not take a shot and pulled down three rebounds in 14 minutes.
• The Thunder outscored Atlanta 20-4 in fastbreak points.
• The Hawks led points in the paint 42-26.
• Atlanta reserve G Tracy McGrady did not return after playing 1 minute of the first quarter and straining his left knee.