Atlanta Hawks Win (Finally!) vs. New Jersey Nets, Clinch A Playoff Spot

Quick Recap for the people who didn’t watch it:

Without Deron Williams, this would be a tough game for the Nets to win. That’s exactly what happened.

First quarter. Anthony Morrow scores the first two points of the game. Hawks answer back with a 19-0 run, giving them a 19-2 lead against the Nets early in the game. The Hawks offense was clicking in all cylinders in the first quarter and the Nets offense wasn’t. The Hawks were making (unusually) smart plays while the Nets (as usual) didn’t look very good. Simple really. The Nets eventually got it going late in the quarter, but the Hawks still held a 17 point lead after one. Hawks, 32. Nets, 15. 30 of the 32 points came from Josh Smith(10 points), Joe Johnson(8 points), Al Horford(6 points), and Kirk Hinrich(6 points). They were a combined 13-18 from the field.

Second quarter, same story. The Hawks offense continued to get whatever they wanted while the Nets continued to make bad decisions offensively. There just wasn’t anyone on the Nets that could get it going which forced Avery Johnson to keep subbing in and subbing out players. At one point, he even went with a horrendous lineup of Farmar, Uzoh, Graham, Wright, and Petro. It was ugly for the Nets in the second quarter (and the first half).  Jamal Crawford was in “6th man” form in the second quarter, providing a spark (that we haven’t seen in a while) offensively off the bench. He was dishing and sharing the ball fairly while getting his own shots. He had 4 assists and 10 points in the second quarter. Hawks led by 26 at halftime. Nets, 31. Hawks 57.

Third quarter. Basically garbage basketball. Both teams just kept answering back and forth offensively and neither played much defense. Nothing really worth mentioning other than Joe Johnson injuring his thumb during the quarter. He went to the locker room to check on it (x-rays were negative) and came back on the bench and smartly never returned to the game, considering the margin being so large. After three, Hawks were still up big. Hawks, 82. Nets, 61.

Fourth quarter now. Hawks started settling for jumpshots or isolating and driving it in (with no luck) while the Nets continued to run their offense. As you may have guessed, what was once a 30 point lead for the Hawks, dwindled down to 10 with about 5 minutes left in the game. The Nets gave the Hawks (and the fans) a scare for a bit, but Al Horford erased all fears by scoring six straight points. The game eventually ended and the Hawks clinched a playoff spot with the win.

Final Score: Nets: 87 | Hawks: 98

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Game story is simple. Hawks won this game in the first half. Basically anyone who played (except Teague 🙁 ) in the first half, made the most out of their minutes. Hinrich was creating his own looks and creating looks for others. Josh Smith played smart and didn’t settle for jumpshots. Joe Johnson was hitting his shots. Jamal was hitting his shots. Al Horford was solid in both ends. Marvin Williams played decent. Zaza provided the Hawks with some second chance opportunities. It was a team effort all around.

Overall, a good win for the Hawks. The Hawks played well for the most part, but again, they took their foot off the gas pedal and let the Nets back in it. The game didn’t have a pretty finish, but honestly, I think everyone (from the entire organization to the fanbase) is willing to take any win. No matter how they win it.

My other Noteable Notes:

• Larry Drew basically still used a 7 man rotation. Jeff Teague did get minutes early on, but he didn’t play much and didn’t produce much because of it. Same for Damien Wilkins. Majority of the minutes (and production) came from the usual 7(5 starters + Jamal and Zaza).
• Joe Johnson will miss at least one game with the thumb injury.
• For the Nets, Anthony Morrow led the way. He scored 25 points (tying a season high for him), surprisingly without hitting a three point shot. Asides from him, there really wasn’t anyone else for the Nets who had a good game.
• Seriously, Brook Lopez?! You’re a  7 footer with fairly good athleticism and size. You can’t grab one single rebound in 30 minutes of play. I can’t believe he and Al Horford were ever compared to one another.

Next up: The Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Joe Johnson won’t be playing.

Final Thought: Let’s hope this win catapults the Hawks to make a good run and gain some momentum heading into the playoffs. 9 games left!