Atlanta Hawks remain unbeaten with a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers
The Atlanta Hawks (4-0) got 22 points from Marvin Williams and a solid double-double from Al Horford, who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds, on their way to an easy 100-88 win over
the Cleveland Cavaliers (1-3) on Tuesday 2 November at the Quicken Loans Arena.
With all of the championship talk going on about the Boston Celtics, the Orlando Magic, and the Miami Heat, it is the Hawks who have gotten off to the hottest start in the Eastern Conference.
With yesterday’s win, they remained the only unbeaten team in the east, while out west, the Los Angeles Lakers (4-0) and the New Orleans Hornets (3-0) are unbeaten so far this season. Williams, who added four rebounds and two assists last night, said him and
his team are just fine with their underdog status.
"We're flying under the radar," he said. "I don't think anyone's upset about it. We know what we're capable
of doing. We have confidence in ourselves. We have to show it every night."
The Hawks, who finished with the third-best record in the east last season, got 15 points apiece from Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson, with the latter chipping in six rebounds and nine assists.
Jamal Crawford came off the bench to score 16 points, going 2-2 from behind the arc.
The Hawks built a 17-point lead in the first half but allowed the Cavaliers to make a run, getting to within five points with just over five minutes remaining. Horford, who played in his
first game since signing a five-year contract extension worth $60 million the previous day, liked the fight he saw in his team.
"We got off to a real good start and then we hit some adversity," he said. "That's a good sign. We were able to pull it out. We're handling situations better. Last year, this would have
been a game we would have let slip away. We feel very confident."
The Cavaliers, who had Mo Williams back in the lineup after missing three games with a groin injury, were led by J.J. Hickson, who scored a game-high 31 points. Williams scored 12 points
off the bench while Anderson Varejao, who recently said he is happy in Cleveland despite trade rumours, pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds.
A layup by Hickson with 3:49 left in the game brought Cleveland to within four points at 91-87 but two free throws by Williams and a jumper by Horford put the Hawks up by eight, a lead
they wouldn’t relinquish.
The Cavaliers are still not back at full strength, with Antawn Jamison missing last night’s contest as he continues to recover from a sore knee. First-year Cleveland coach Byron Scott,
trying to coach a team that lost LeBron James over the summer, said the Hawks just got hot.
"I thought they hit some tough shots, but we had some defensive lapses as well," he said. "Then they got going and we still challenged shots, but they made them. You have to figure at
some point that they are going to calm down and miss some."
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