Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Hornets and Golden State Warriors pull upsets on Sunday night action – NBA Round-up
Miami Heat Vs Atlanta Hawks
The Miami Heat did not have the best of starting in their defence of the NBA championship when they were defeated by the Atlanta Hawks in their first preseason game here on Sunday night. Dwyane Wade missed the game and LeBron James
was cold on a night when Josh Smith carried the Hawks team on his shoulders by scoring a team high 21 points. Smith is expected to take a pivotal role in the Hawks offence after the departure of Joe Johnson, and he gave proof during the game that he is ready
for the additional responsibility. Louis Williams scored 18 points off the bench for the Hawks and Kyle Korver failed to deliver the shooting skills that made him a sensation with the Chicago Bulls, going 2 of 7 from the field and 1 of 4 from three point range
to score 5 points on the night.
Miami led 26-19 at the end of the first period but the Hawks had made it a two point game by halftime, leading 47-45. Atlanta then dominated the final period to escape with the victory, outscoring Miami 22-13 in the fourth quarter
alone. Atlanta shot 41.2 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from three point range, where as Miami shot 45.1 percent from the field but only 33.3 percent from the distance. Ray Allen scored 10 points for Miami but was unable to get his three point shooting
going, and Chris Bosh led the team by scoring 22 points and 6 rebounds.
New Orleans Hornets Vs Orlando magic
The number one pick of the 2012 NBA Draft, Anthony Davis, played his first preseason game for the Hornets on Sunday night against the Orlando Magic, but was unable to make an impressive debut. Davis scored 8 points and 8 rebounds,
fellow 2012 draft mate Austin Rivers scored 10 points, but the Hornets managed to edge past the Orlando Magic 85-80. Brian Roberts added 17 points and four assists and Lance Thomas came off the bench to score 10 points for the Hornets. E’Twaun Moore scored
a team high 16 points and 7 assists for Orlando, and Glen Davis added 13 points and 5 rebounds.
Orlando started with a 12-1 run but the Hornets quickly got into rhythm trailed only 16-18 at the end of the first period. Orlando again dominated the 2nd period and outscored the Hornets 28-15 to take a 46-31 advantage
into the half time break. The Hornets, however, started turning things around in the 3rd period and outscored the Magic 31-14 in the final period alone to eventually pick up the victory. Both teams shot poorly from the field on the night, with no
team averaging more than 40 percent.
Golden State Warriors vs Los Angeles Lakers
The Golden State Warriors had the best possible start to their preseason schedule when they defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in Fresno on Sunday night. The Lakers were without superstar centre Dwight Howard, who is still recovering
from back surgery. David Lee scored 19 points and 7 rebounds for the Warriors, while Klay Thompson had 18 points and 4 assists. Harrison Barnes also added 13 points to the team tally coming off the bench.
The Lakers came out strong in the first period led by Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant, managing to take a 26-17 lead at the end of the first period. The Warriors found their footing in the game during the 2nd period and managed
to narrow the deficit, but still trailed 49-56 at halftime. The third period, however, saw the Lakers fall into a slump like never seen before as the Warriors outscored the Lakers 37-10 and took an 86-66 lead going into the final period. The Lakers were never
able to recover after that point and the Warriors kept the pressure going in the final period, taking a 110-83 victory in the end.
Kobe Bryant scored 10 points, Steve Nash finished with 5 and Pau Gasol managed only 9 points and 7 rebounds. Metta World Peace and Jordan Hill both added 10 points to the team tally as well. The Warriors shot 56.2 percent from
the field as well as the three point line, where as the Lakers were a mediocre 39.4 percent from the field and 45.5 percent from three point range.
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