The Atlanta Hawks continued its winning ways as it demolished the visiting Denver Nuggets with a 116-98 victory at the Philips arena on Thursday evening.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored a season-high 21 points in his first start of the season for the surging Hawks, who have won four straight games in a row.

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"It's tough, but at the same time you've got to be ready for any situation," said Hardaway, who was assigned by the Hawks to the NBA's Developmental League this season. 

Hardaway, who was the 2013 NBA draft 24^th overall pick, also had seven rebounds, four assists and one steal with no turnovers in 29:34 minutes of playing time.

Starters Paul Millsap and Jeff Teague added 16 points apiece for the Hawks, who moved to third place in the Eastern Conference after winning seven of its last eight games. The Southeast Division top team had eight scorers in double figures, including Thabo Sefolosha, who finished the night with 14 points.

The Hawks began the first quarter with a strong start to take an early 33-23 lead. The Nuggets made a 25-21 run in the second quarter to cut the deficit to just six 54-48 closing the first half.

Atlanta began to dominate the game in the third period with an 18-8 charge that stretches their lead to a double-digit 16 points 72-56 midway of the third quarter. The Hawks were able to maintain their lead and cap the quarter with 87-76.

The Hawks started to pull away in the early minutes of the final quarter and continued to pound Denver with its better scoring night extending the margin to 18 points 107-89 with over five minutes left in the game clock.

The Nuggets failed to trim down the deficit as the Hawks dominated the remaining minutes of the game and wrap up the victory.

D.J. Augustine scored 17 points and Joffrey Lauvergne contributed with 16 for the Nuggets, who have lost the first three games on their five-game trip.

TagsNBA, Atlanta Hawks, Denver Nuggets, Tim Hardaway Jr., Paul Millsap, Eastern Conference