Atlanta Hawks: Studs and duds as winning streak hits lucky number seven

The Atlanta Hawks (11-9) may have officially reduced their darkest period of this still-young season to little more than a footnote. After suffering through a six-game losing skid that dropped them near the basement of the Eastern Conference, they just extended their winning streak to seven games with a 132-100 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

With Ja Morant going down in the first quarter with what is reportedly a knee sprain, the Hawks stretched an eight-point lead into a 14-point margin by halftime. That gave way to an absolutely dominant third quarter that saw Atlanta outscore their hosts 43-18.

It’s already the seventh time this season the Hawks have scored 40-plus in a quarter; something they did 12 times total.

The Atlanta Hawks punctuated their two-game road trip with a dominant win over the Grizzlies

They once again took control of the interior, as Clint Capela continued his well-rounded performances with 23 points, 17 rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and a steal. He has averaged 16.0 points, 14.8 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 assists over the last four games.

John Collins had 21 points, eight boards, two assists, one steal, with one block while going 2-of-2 from downtown; perhaps the only part of his game that hasn’t been clicking on this recent run.

The duo combined to go 19-of-25 from the floor.

This all led to quiet games from Bogdan Bogdanovic and Kevin Huerter who combined for just 15 points despite shooting over 54 percent and going 2-of-5 from downtown.

Just 30.3 percent of the Hawks attempts came from beyond the arc against the Grizzlies, far below their season average of 35.4 percent. They’ve only attempted triples at a lesser rate four times this season, all coming within the last 30 days, and went 1-3 in those games.