A huge game from Al Horford and a powerful 4th quarter helped the Hawks soar past the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-97. Horford had 19 points and 9 rebounds and played 34 minutes, while Lebron James led the Cavs with 18 points and 6 rebounds.
James was cold for the night, shooting 5-13 from the field. The Hawks ended the Cavs winning streak and continued their own, pushing the current streak to 6 games in a row and their record to 49-12.
The Hawks took a 17 point lead during the 1st and 2nd quarters however let the Cavs take a lead in the 3rd for the first time since being up 5-4 early in the game.
The Hawks honored Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins for the night during halftime, a day after the Hawks revealed his new statue in front of Philips Arena.
Wilkins notably said “Atlanta does not have fickle fans. We do play basketball in Atlanta. You keep rooting for our team.”
Jeff Teague had 16 points and helped the Hawks keep the Cavs at bay. Kyle Korver was pretty cold during the game going 2-8 from the field but warmed up in the 4th, shooting two 3’s to push the Hawks lead ahead to 91-81.
The Hawks had six players in double figures and made their case for the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. DeMarre Carroll was on Lebron James for the game and kept him quiet. Kyrie Irving had 20 points and played 42 minutes going 7-15.
The Hawks went into the second quarter with a 36-19 lead and showed the Cavs that they could play with playoff intensity. Many experts pegged this game as a preview of what could be the Eastern Conference Finals, and even included a technical foul on Lebron and Horford elbowing a Cavs player in the 4th.
The Cavs fell to 39-25 after the loss.
Next up for the Hawks will be the 76’ers on Saturday night. The Cavs take on the Phoenix Suns.
