NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jeff Teague tied a career high with 24 points despite playing on a sore left ankle, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the New Orleans Hornets, 94-72, on Sunday night.

Willie Green added 16 points and Marvin Williams 14 for Atlanta, which won for the fourth time in five games and handed the struggling Hornets their most lopsided loss of the season.

The Hawks broke the game open with a 23-4 run during the last half of the third quarter, while New Orleans was in the midst of missing 12 straight shots.

Emeka Okafor scored 13 points for New Orleans, which was as close as 53-48 on Jarrett Jack’s free throws with 5:44 to go in the third before Atlanta took over.

Jack finished with 10 points in the Hornets’ 16th loss in 18 games.

The Hornets, who have lost 10 times by single digits, have been competitive in most of their games and hoped they were turning the corner after a lopsided victory over Orlando on Friday night, which snapped a nine-game skid. Instead, they responded with one of their worst games of the season, shooting only 37.5 percent (27 of 72).

The Hornets shot 5-of-19 in the first quarter and 5-of-20 in the third. They went from 7:06 of the third quarter to 9:35 of the fourth without hitting a field goal (0 for 12) and turned the ball over six times during that stretch.

The Hawks shot 44 percent (36 of 82) and went 12-of-23 on 3-pointers, with Teague hitting all four he attempted. Williams was 3-of-4 from long range. Atlanta also

outrebounded New Orleans, 42-36.

Joe Johnson and Ivan Johnson each scored nine points for the Hawks.

Teague left Atlanta’s previous game at Detroit on Friday with a sprained left ankle, but he returned to the starting lineup Sunday and had an immediate effect on the game.

Atlanta raced to a 12-2 lead with Williams and Teague each hitting 3s and Teague adding a 16-foot jumper. Teague then hit back-to-back 3s on his way to 11 first-quarter points ,and the Hawks took a 21-point lead barely nine minutes into the game when Kirk Hinrich’s layup made it 27-6.

The Hornets clawed back into the game with an 11-0 run in the second quarter during which Okafor scored five points and capped the surge with a three-point play on an inside basket to make it 33-26.

Williams’ second 3 of the game interrupted the spurt before Okafor scored inside and Gustavo Ayon hit a reverse layup to cut it to 36-30. Atlanta then built its lead back to double digits, closing out the half with a 6-1 mini-run capped by Johnson’s driving floater from the lane to make it 46-35.

____

Contact The Daily Reveille’s sports staff at sports@lsureveille.com

Hornets Coach Monty Williams admitted before Sunday night’s game he made a mistake by not pushing harder for New Orleans to re-sign shooting guard Willie Green once the NBA lockout ended last December. Green instead signed with Sunday’s opponent, the Atlanta Hawks.

And Williams could have hoped that the Atlanta training staff wouldn’t have been so successful in rehabbing a rolled left ankle that drove Hawks’ starting point guard Jeff Teague off the floor in Atlanta’s win at Detroit on Friday night.

But Teague put up a career-high-tying 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-4 from beyond the 3-point line, and Green added 16 points off the bench as Atlanta routed the Hornets 94-72 on Sunday night at the New Orleans Arena.

It was the Hornets’ 16th loss in their past 18 games, coming off their best effort of the season in Friday night’s 93-67 win over the Orlando Magic.

Emeka Okafor scored 13 points to lead New Orleans, which shot 27-of-72 from the field (37.5 percent).

The Hornets (4-16) visit the Miami Heat tonight.

Teague played 21 minutes in Atlanta’s 107-101 overtime win against the Pistons two nights earlier, but could not return to the floor after injuring his ankle. He had been listed as questionable for Sunday night’s game.

The only question early on, though, was if Teague would miss a shot.

“I took good care of it and the trainers did a great job with me on the day off, so it felt really good,” said Teague, who played 29 minutes against the Hornets. “I was just playing, taking the shots that were open. I just happened to make them tonight. I felt fine.”

The Hawks (15-6) scored the first five points of the game, and when Teague hit his first 3-pointer with 9:32 to go in the first quarter, then followed with a shorter jumper, the Hawks were up 10 just 3 1/2 minutes into the contest. Teague’s back-to-back 3-pointers two minutes later extended the Hawks’ advantage to 17.

“Am I surprised? No,” Williams said. “Because I get a feel for our team the way we come out in the first quarter. I thought the effort in the first quarter was kind of there, but not assertive the way we were. I was really disappointed in our effort, especially at home.”

The Hornets trailed by as many as 21 points in the first half — the largest deficit the team had faced at any time this season — as the Hawks couldn’t seem to miss from the outside, especially Teague.

That deficit benchmark would swell considerably, however.

New Orleans, thanks to a 12-3 stretch in the second quarter, cut the Hawks’ advantage to six, 36-30 with 4:52 left, on a driving reverse layup by Gustavo Ayon, the final bucket in the run.

But the Hawks closed the half on 10-5 run to push the lead back to 11, 46-35, at the break.

The Hornets pulled within five, 53-48, with 5:44 to go in the third. That was as close as New Orleans would get. The Hawks outscored New Orleans 23-4 the rest of the quarter to go up by 24 on a buzzer-beating, 32-foot shot from Green, who finished 6-of-11 overall and 4-of-7 from beyond the 3-point line.

“Just naturally, you want to go out and beat your old team; that’s what it was all about,” Green said. “To try to make a point that I should have been here? No. It just didn’t work out. That’s the nature of this business. I’m thankful for the opportunity I had last year. The city treated me great. It was one of the greatest experiences of my NBA career. I believe God closes one door and opens another. I have a great opportunity with the Hawks. I’m just trying to make the most of it.”

At one point, the Hornets went nearly nine minutes without hitting a shot from the field, missing 12 straight until Xavier Henry’s 3-pointer from the corner with 9:35 to go in the game.

By that time, the Hawks had extended the lead to 25, eventually pushing it to 29.

“For us to go through the motions, come out in the third quarter, cut it to five, then let them go on that kind of run …” Williams said, “a lot of that is talent. Our guard play tonight was below average. I thought if you’d hold (Hawks All-Star guard) Joe Johnson (to nine points), you’d take that. We couldn’t capitalize on it.”

When the Hornets’ Jason Smith made the first two baskets of the second half, Hawks Coach Larry Drew called a quick timeout for his club to regroup.

“I called the timeout, just so we could settle down and not panic,” Drew said. “And we came back out of the timeout and put our foot on the gas and just took off.”

And the Hornets just stopped, it seemed, once the lead was cut to five, and especially after the Hawks’ mind-numbing run.

“We just didn’t continue to do what got us back in the game,” said Smith, who didn’t score again after those two third-quarter buckets. “We fought hard. We played defense. We had more energy. We were playing aggressive. That’s what got us back into the game, within five or six points.

“Then we got away from that. And, obviously, their lead increased and we just put our heads down. You can’t do that. You’ve got to come out and fight every game like it’s your last.

•••••••

Jimmy Smith can be reached at jsmith@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3814.

Instead of giving his sore left ankle more rest, Jeff Teague decided to play and the point guard turned in one of the best games of his career.

Teague tied a career high with 24 points and the Atlanta Hawks won for the fourth time in five games, 94-72 over the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday night.

“I didn’t really feel too much pain when I got out there,” Teague said. “I might feel a little bit tomorrow or something, but we just played as a team. We were moving the ball well, guys were getting open shots and just knocking them down.”

Willie Green added 16 points and Marvin Williams 14 for Atlanta, which can close its road trip with a 4-1 record by winning in Toronto on Tuesday night.

“It’s just a road mentality,” Teague said. “It’s tough to beat somebody at their home, so you come in and you have to be fully focused and ready, and we’re doing that.”

The Hawks broke the game open with a 23-4 run during the last half of the third quarter, while New Orleans was in the midst of missing 12 straight shots. Green’s 32-foot 3-pointer to end the period made it 76-52, and Atlanta’s lead got as large as 29 in the fourth quarter as the Hawks handed the Hornets their most lopsided loss this season.

“I don’t think we let them key in on anything. We switched it up with the play calling and things like that,” Teague said. “When you’re moving the ball and making shots like that, it’s hard for anybody to play defense.”

Emeka Okafor scored 13 points for New Orleans, which was as close as 53-48 on Jarrett Jack’s free throws with 5:44 to go in the third before Atlanta took over.

Jack finished with 10 points in the Hornets’ 16th loss in 18 games.

The Hornets, who have lost 10 times by single digits, have been competitive in most of their games and had hoped they were turning the corner after a lopsided victory over Orlando on Friday night, which snapped a nine-game skid. Instead, they responded with one of their worst games of the season, shooting only 37.5 percent (27 of 72).

“Frustrating. Embarrassing. It’s not what the fans deserve. It’s not what the coaches deserve,” Hornets forward Jason Smith said. “We came out sluggish. We didn’t play hard. We didn’t play defense.”

The Hornets shot 5 of 19 in the first quarter and 5 of 20 in the third. They went from 7:06 of the third quarter to 9:35 of the fourth without hitting a field goal (0 for 12) and turned the ball over six times during that stretch.

“It’s certainly one of those games you have to flush the toilet on and get ready for the next one, but I was really disappointed in our effort, especially at home with a day in between games,” Hornets coach Monty Williams said. “We don’t have enough talent to go out there and play one-on-one basketball. We certainly don’t have enough talent to go out there and not play with effort. That was the frustrating part.”

The Hawks shot 44 percent (36 of 82) and went 12 of 23 on 3-pointers, with Teague hitting all four he attempted. Marvin Williams was 3 of 4 from long range. Atlanta also outrebounded New Orleans 42-36.

Joe Johnson and Ivan Johnson each scored nine points for the Hawks.

Teague left Atlanta’s previous game at Detroit on Friday with a sprained left ankle, but he returned to the starting lineup Sunday and had an immediate effect on the game.

Atlanta raced to a 12-2 lead with Marvin Williams and Teague each hitting 3s and Teague adding a 16-foot jumper. Teague then hit back-to-back 3s on his way to 11 first-quarter points and the Hawks took a 21-point lead barely 9 minutes into the game when Kirk Hinrich’s layup made it 27-6.

Green called Teague’s performance on the sore ankle “very impressive.”

“We’ve been constantly on him about just being aggressive and tonight he did that,” Green said. “He set the tone for us. He does a good job of getting guys involved and sometimes he has to be aggressive. We just want him to be able to do all of that and that’s a lot to ask, but he’s just getting better.”

The Hornets clawed back into the game with an 11-0 run in the second quarter during which Okafor scored five points and capped the surge with a three-point play on an inside basket to make it 33-26.

Williams’ second 3 of the game interrupted the spurt before Okafor scored inside and Gustavo Ayon hit a reverse layup to cut it to 36-30. Atlanta then built its lead back to double digits, closing out the half with a 6-1 mini-run capped by Johnson’s driving floater from the lane to make it 46-35.

Notes: Greivis Vasquez tied a career high with eight assists. … During New Orleans’ 11-0 run in the second quarter, Green hit a jumper at the shot-clock buzzer that was initially ruled good and overturned on replay. … The Hornets’ 21-point deficit in the first quarter was at that point the largest deficit for New Orleans this season until it got worse in the second half. … New Orleans and Atlanta meet only once in this lockout-shortened season. … The Hornets’ worst loss coming in was by 16 points at Sacramento.

CBSSports.com wire reports
Jan. 29, 2012

NEW ORLEANS — Instead of giving his sore left ankle more rest, Jeff Teague decided to play and the point guard turned in one of the best games of his career.

Teague tied a career high with 24 points and the Atlanta Hawks won for the fourth time in five games, 94-72 over the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday night.

“I didn’t really feel too much pain when I got out there,” Teague said. “I might feel a little bit tomorrow or something, but we just played as a team. We were moving the ball well, guys were getting open shots and just knocking them down.”

Willie Green added 16 points and Marvin Williams 14 for Atlanta, which can close its road trip with a 4-1 record by winning in Toronto on Tuesday night.

“It’s just a road mentality,” Teague said. “It’s tough to beat somebody at their home, so you come in and you have to be fully focused and ready, and we’re doing that.”

The Hawks broke the game open with a 23-4 run during the last half of the third quarter, while New Orleans was in the midst of missing 12 straight shots. Green’s 32-foot 3-pointer to end the period made it 76-52, and Atlanta’s lead got as large as 29 in the fourth quarter as the Hawks handed the Hornets their most lopsided loss this season.

“I don’t think we let them key in on anything. We switched it up with the play calling and things like that,” Teague said. “When you’re moving the ball and making shots like that, it’s hard for anybody to play defense.”

Emeka Okafor scored 13 points for New Orleans, which was as close as 53-48 on Jarrett Jack’s free throws with 5:44 to go in the third before Atlanta took over.

Jack finished with 10 points in the Hornets’ 16th loss in 18 games.

The Hornets, who have lost 10 times by single digits, have been competitive in most of their games and had hoped they were turning the corner after a lopsided victory over Orlando on Friday night, which snapped a nine-game skid. Instead, they responded with one of their worst games of the season, shooting only 37.5 percent (27 of 72).

“Frustrating. Embarrassing. It’s not what the fans deserve. It’s not what the coaches deserve,” Hornets forward Jason Smith said. “We came out sluggish. We didn’t play hard. We didn’t play defense.”

The Hornets shot 5 of 19 in the first quarter and 5 of 20 in the third. They went from 7:06 of the third quarter to 9:35 of the fourth without hitting a field goal (0 for 12) and turned the ball over six times during that stretch.

“It’s certainly one of those games you have to flush the toilet on and get ready for the next one, but I was really disappointed in our effort, especially at home with a day in between games,” Hornets coach Monty Williams said. “We don’t have enough talent to go out there and play one-on-one basketball. We certainly don’t have enough talent to go out there and not play with effort. That was the frustrating part.”

The Hawks shot 44 percent (36 of 82) and went 12 of 23 on 3-pointers, with Teague hitting all four he attempted. Marvin Williams was 3 of 4 from long range. Atlanta also outrebounded New Orleans 42-36.

Joe Johnson and Ivan Johnson each scored nine points for the Hawks.

Teague left Atlanta’s previous game at Detroit on Friday with a sprained left ankle, but he returned to the starting lineup Sunday and had an immediate effect on the game.

Atlanta raced to a 12-2 lead with Marvin Williams and Teague each hitting 3s and Teague adding a 16-foot jumper. Teague then hit back-to-back 3s on his way to 11 first-quarter points and the Hawks took a 21-point lead barely 9 minutes into the game when Kirk Hinrich’s layup made it 27-6.

Green called Teague’s performance on the sore ankle “very impressive.”

“We’ve been constantly on him about just being aggressive and tonight he did that,” Green said. “He set the tone for us. He does a good job of getting guys involved and sometimes he has to be aggressive. We just want him to be able to do all of that and that’s a lot to ask, but he’s just getting better.”

The Hornets clawed back into the game with an 11-0 run in the second quarter during which Okafor scored five points and capped the surge with a three-point play on an inside basket to make it 33-26.

Williams’ second 3 of the game interrupted the spurt before Okafor scored inside and Gustavo Ayon hit a reverse layup to cut it to 36-30. Atlanta then built its lead back to double digits, closing out the half with a 6-1 mini-run capped by Johnson’s driving floater from the lane to make it 46-35.

Notes

Greivis Vasquez tied a career high with eight assists. … During New Orleans’ 11-0 run in the second quarter, Green hit a jumper at the shot-clock buzzer that was initially ruled good and overturned on replay. … The Hornets’ 21-point deficit in the first quarter was at that point the largest deficit for New Orleans this season until it got worse in the second half. … New Orleans and Atlanta meet only once in this lockout-shortened season. … The Hornets’ worst loss coming in was by 16 points at Sacramento.

New Orleans Hornets

After countless close losses in January, the New Orleans Hornets finally broke out in a big way with a 26-point win over the Orlando Magic Friday night. After a day off, the Hornets looked to make it two in a row against the Atlanta Hawks Sunday evening in New Orleans. It was not meant to be as the Hawks flew past the Hornets 94-72.

New Orleans Hornets vs. Atlanta Hawks

As a native of New Orleans, the rivalry between my hometown and the fine folks of Atlanta has led to tears of both joy and sadness. Needless to say, there have been numerous memorable games between the Saints and Falcons over the years. However, the 100-59 pasting that the Hornets put on the Hawks last year holds a special place in my heart.

Apparently, I’m not the only one who remembers that game. The Hawks started out on Sunday night like they wanted to beat the Hornets 100-59 themselves. To be successful, New Orleans has to play great defense. The Hornets are not talented enough to get into a shootout with athletic teams like the Hawks and come out on top.

The Hawks did not miss a shot until well into the first quarter. In fact, the Hornets trailed at one point 27-6. Jeff Teague was particularly deadly for the Hawks. And former Hornet Willie Green was hot as well. In the second period, the Hornets got back to playing defense. But points were still hard to come by as New Orleans trailed 46-35 at halftime.

A 20-2 Hawks scoring run in the third period put the Hornets away. The biggest problem all season for New Orleans continued against the Hawks. The Hornets were anemic once again from three-point land while the Hawks shot over 50% from behind the arc all night. It wasn’t quite 100-59 but the Hawks blew out New Orleans 94-72.

Looking ahead

Things don’t figure to get any easier for the Hornets on Monday. After falling to the Hawks, New Orleans will travel to Miami to face the Heat. Last year, the Hornets got off to a hot start and one of their early season wins came against the Heat. If this New Orleans team can also beat the Heat, it will be the biggest story in the NBA Monday night.

Patrick Michael was born in New Orleans and currently resides in the Big Easy. A loyal New Orleans NBA fan, Patrick was a diehard New Orleans Jazz fan and now cheers for the Hornets. Patrick was in the New Orleans Arena the night the Hornets were one win away from the Western Conference Finals.

Source

CST broadcast of the New Orleans Hornets vs. Atlanta Hawks

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Hornets vs. Hawks

Time/place: 6 p.m., New Orleans Arena, (17,200)

TV/Radio: CST, 106.1-FM, 830-AM (Spanish).

Notable: Note the early tip time for tonight’s game. … Atlanta is in the midst of one of those geographically bizarre lockout-driven road trips, a four-game set that brought the Hawks first to San Antonio, followed by a game Friday night in Detroit, tonight here, then Tuesday night at Toronto. … After losing to the Spurs, the Hawks beat the Pistons in overtime Friday night. … New Orleans snapped a nine-game losing streak — and a nine-game home losing skid — with a 93-67 win Friday night over the Orlando Magic. … Two former Hornets return to the Arena tonight with the Hawks, guards Willie Green and Jannero Pargo. … Atlanta opened the regular season as the league’s second-oldest team with an average of 29 years, 77 days. … New Orleans plays Monday night at Miami.

Hawks

Player Pos. Ht. Wt. PPG

Marvin Williams F 6-9 245 10.4

Josh Smith F 6-9 225 16.3

Zaza Pachulia C 6-11 275 6.7

Joe Johnson G 6-7 240 19.1

Jeff  Teague G 6-2 181 12.4

Reserves: W. Green, G, 6.0, I. Johnson, F, 4.9, T. McGrady, F, 6.9, J. Pargo, G, 3.9. V. Radmanovic, F, 6.0.

Hornets

Player Pos. Ht. Wt. PPG

Trevor Ariza F 6-9 215 10.4

Jason Smith F 7-0 225 8.4

Emeka Okafor C 6-10 255 9.0

Marco Belinelli G 6-5 195 9.7

Jarrett Jack G 6-3 197 16.5

Reserves: C. Landry, F, 12.5, G. Vasquez, G, 5.6, G. Ayon, F, 4.0, A. Aminu, F, 4.8, X. Henry, G, 2.5, D. Summers, F, 4.3.

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As Joe Johnson goes, so go the Atlanta Hawks lately.

He’ll look to continue his hot stretch as visiting Atlanta seeks to end a
three-game losing streak to the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday night.

Johnson’s recent performances have helped the Hawks overcome a potentially
disastrous injury to big man Al Horford, who has been out since tearing a
pectoral muscle Jan. 11.

Atlanta (14-6) is 7-2 since Horford went down, with Johnson averaging 25.7
points in the victories and scoring no fewer than 23 in any of them. He’s
combined for 18 points in the two defeats.

Johnson scored 28 of his 30 points after halftime and hit a tying 3-pointer
with 1.9 seconds left in regulation as the Hawks defeated Detroit 107-101 in
overtime Friday.

Atlanta improved to 10-1 when Johnson scores at least 20. He said the tying
shot at the end of the fourth quarter was tougher than it may have seemed.

“I jammed two fingers on my left hand,” said Johnson, who went 1 for 9 from
the field in the first half. “I couldn’t really get my feeling back. I thought
we were going to call a timeout, but nobody called a timeout, so I just did what
I could to try to get a shot off.”

Marvin Williams added 22 points for the Hawks, who trailed by as much as 12
in the second half and by six with less than a minute left.

“To me it’s just an unbelievable win,” coach Larry Drew said. “It was a
gutsy performance. We were literally dead in the water.”

It’s likely the same feeling Drew had in the most recent meeting with the
Hornets.

Johnson was held to nine points and Atlanta was embarrassed on their home
floor, 100-59 last Jan. 21. It marked the fewest points the Hawks have scored
since moving from St. Louis to Atlanta in 1968.

That New Orleans team looks vastly different from the one that will take the
court Sunday, though it proved Friday it can be just as dangerous.

The Hornets (4-15) ended a nine-game losing streak by routing Orlando 93-67
with the help of Carl Landry’s team-high 17 points off the bench.

Coach Monty Williams was proud of the effort from a rebuilding team which
lost Chris Paul and David West in the offseason.

“Any time you hold team like that to 67 points, you get excited about the
fight and character of our team,” Williams said. “I hope our fans understand
this transition hasn’t been easy.

“We have a ways to go … but when I’m in that locker room, in those huddles
and the guys are supporting one another, out there fighting for each other, the
way they played tonight, it makes the prospects for the future of our
organization look bright.”

Building for the future has become a priority, and the organization told
Chris Kaman – who came over from the Los Angeles Clippers in the Paul trade – it
is seeking trades for the veteran center.

Kaman has been inactive for the past two games and will no longer suit up
for the Hornets, who plan to give youngsters Jason Smith, Gustavo Ayon and
Al-Farouq Aminu more playing time.

“We had a conversation with Chris and expressed that the Hornets are going
to go in a different direction,” general manager Dell Demps said. “Chris has
been the ultimate professional during this process and we thank him for the way
he has handled the situation.”

New Orleans has held Atlanta to less than 90 points in winning each of the
last three meetings.

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