Joe Johnson stars as the Atlanta Hawks score impressive 110-87 win over Utah Jazz
Joe Johnson scored a season-high 5 three-pointers en route to 28 points, as the Atlanta Hawks managed an impressive 110-87 win over Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.
Hawks coach Larry Drew spoke to reporters after the game. He commented on Johnson's form in recent games by saying, "He is getting into his rhythm. You can see he is starting
to find rhythm in his game and what we do. I am very proud of how he has been defending. He has done just a tremendous job in his effort on the defensive end."
Jamal Crawford had an impressive night with 26 points, four assists and eight rebounds for Atlanta, who won their 24th game of the season. While Al
Horford ended the game with 18 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Deron Williams did all he could as he contributed 19 points and nine assists for the Jazz, who lost their 12th game of the season. Andrei
Kirilenko also scored 19 points and pulled down six rebounds in the defeat. While Al Jefferson posted 13 points from 6-for-17 shooting.
Utah were missing some key players in the form of Paul Millsap and Mehmet Okur. Millsap had to sit out
the game with a sore hip. While centre Mehmet Okur was also absent as he is under day-to-day observation due to a lower back strain.
Game Story
This game was over almost as soon as it began. The Jazz missed eight of their first 10 shots, and the Hawks made them pay. Atlanta opened the game on a 12-3 run, and an
8-0 spurt put them ahead 20-6. Johnson outscored the Jazz 8-6 by himself during the game's first seven minutes. Utah did not get closer than seven points after falling behind 20-6.
"It's a tribute to a lot of hard work we've been putting in and the focus and intensity we need on back-to-back [games] coming into a hostile environment like tonight,
knowing that we really had no room for error and that we had to get off to a fast start," Johnson said after the game.
Atlanta played the first quarter fantastically and scored the final six points of the first quarter for a 30-17 lead. In
the second quarter, Utah fought hard to trim the 13-point deficit. However, the biggest excitement came on Crawford’s half-court shot at the buzzer for a 55-41 at the break.
Trailing by fourteen points, Utah played sloppy basketball in the third quarter. However, Atlanta extended their lead by putting together a 9-2 run. Smith’s
three-pointer brought the crowd back into the game by pushing the Atlanta ahead at 81-64. The Hawks earned an 86-69 advantage into the fourth and never looked back until the final buzzer sounded.
Deron Williams said, "I don't know what you call it, but we don't have it. You can't keep getting down by 15 points in the first half and expect to come back. You can
do it every now and then. We have done it a lot in the short season, but you cannot rely on it. I don't think any coach in America has a game plan to get down by 15 and come back every game."
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