CHINA TOPIX

11/22/2024 05:30:45 am

Make CT Your Homepage

NBA Recap: Atlanta Hawks Beat Houston Rockets, Spoil Michael Beasley’s 30-Point Performance

al horford

(Photo : gettyimages.com) Al Horford scored a team-high 22 points, along with nine rebounds and two blocked shots to help the Hawks beat the Rockets.

The surging Atlanta Hawks continue their winnings as they demolished the visiting Houston Rockets with a 109-97 victory at the Philips Arena on Saturday night, spoiling Michael Beasley's season-high 30 points.

Starting center Al Horford scored a team-high 22 points,along with nine rebounds and two blocked shots. Tim Hardaway Jr. finished the game with 20 points including five treys of his seven attempts from beyond the arc region coming off the bench for the Hawks, who improved to 41 wins and 29 losses for this season.

Like Us on Facebook

"I think we're just peaking at the right time as a team," Horford, after going 10 for 19 from the field, said. "It just so happens that we're playing some of the Western Conference teams."

Four other players managed to score double figures for the third-best team of the tight Eastern Conference. The Hawks outshot the Rockets with a better field goal percentage of 50.0 percent (44-88) with 39.3 percent (33-84) for the opposing team.

The Hawks' weathered the Rocket's 42-point in the second quarter. James Harden, who finished the opening period with only two points, scored 14 points in the second quarter and Houston took a 58-52 halftime lead.

In the third period, Atlanta made a 30-25 run and entered the final twelve minutes of the game trailing by one point 83-82. The Hawks staged another run of 18-12 that gave them a five-point lead 100-95 before pulling away in the final three minutes of the match.

Harden scored 25 points while shooting 7 for 17 from the floor and connecting 3 of 5 from the three-point range for the Rockets, who committed 17 turnovers and allowed 24 fast break points for Atlanta.

"You play a team of this caliber, you have to take advantage of everything," said Harden. "Down the stretch we just made some mistakes. They make you pay."

Real Time Analytics