Atlanta Hawks defeat Orlando Magic 85-82: NBA Roundup
The Atlanta Hawks registered their third consecutive victory with a narrow 85-82 win over the Orlando Magic at the Philips Arena on Wednesday night. However, the Magic are still ahead of the Hawks in the Eastern Conference standings by four games.
Forward Josh Smith moved from the power forward to small forward position, and scored a game-high 26 points, four assists and six rebounds in the victory. Guard Joe Johnson added 18 points and six rebounds while centre-forward Al Horford had 11 points, nine
rebounds and five assists for Atlanta.
Marvin Williams came off the bench with 10 points and six rebounds for the Hawks, who have won six of their last 10 games. Reserve centre Zaza Pachulia could not contribute much for his side as he spent most of his time defending Dwight Howard. Big Z had
just five points and seven rebounds for Atlanta.
Jameer Nelson tallied a team-high 20 points and pulled down five assists in Orlando's second straight defeat. Dwight Howard did all he could as he finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds for Orlando, who occupy fourth spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
Hedo Turkoglu also contributed 17 points, five assists and eight rebounds for the Magic, who have lost four of their last 10 contests.
Match Analysis
Hawks centre Jason Collins was once again given the task of defending Orlando's leading scorer, Dwight Howard. He performed his duty brilliantly and refused to allow Howard any space. Collins limited him to 4-for-13 shooting and 9-for-15 from the free-throw
line.
Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy acknowledged the defensive play of Collins. He said, "That is the best defence I have seen all year on Dwight. Against Collins, he did not get a lot of good shots. I thought he did a great job on him. He is big and physical.
He does not give you anything easy. Dwight had trouble getting good, on-balance shots."
Both teams went scoreless for the first two minutes of the first quarter. The Magic then got their shooting touch back and scored the first three points of the game. However, Williams scored eight points in the last two minutes of the quarter to put the
Hawks ahead by 27-25 heading into the second.
Orlando overcame the two-point deficit and went ahead by 34-29, opening the second quarter with a 9-2 run. The Hawks got a nice lift from Smith and regained the edge 39-36. Turkoglu hit a three-pointer in the next minute to tie the game at 39 with three
minutes to go in the first half. Smith responded with a pair of free throws and a three-pointer to give the Hawks a 46-43 lead at half time.
The Magic kept the game close throughout the third quarter but Horford’s free throws and Pachulia’s jump shot finished out the third to put the Hawks in front by 69-61 after three.
Atlanta extended their lead to eight points at 82-74, with less than five minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Orlando then went on an 8-0 run to the tie the game at 82 with one minute remaining. Johnson’s running jump shot and Collins’ free throw broke
the ice to give the Hawks an 85-82 lead with just five seconds to go. Turkoglu then missed a three-pointer in the dying seconds which could have sent the game into overtime.
Atlanta coach Larry Drew was pleased with his team's recent performances and added that they are fully equipped for the playoffs. He said,
"It's a playoff-intensity game, a playoff-energy game, knowing that they could potentially be our first-round opponent. This was just a huge win for us. It has to boost our confidence."
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