The Atlanta Hawks and the Cleveland Cavaliers faced off for the fourth time this season at the Philips Arena in Atlanta on March 6, which was basically a statement game for the two teams.
The league-leading Atlanta Hawks wanted to impose its will on the fourth-running Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference. It also wants to shun all notions that its 49-12 win-loss record is no longer an offshoot of their good schedule but their string of winning streaks is for real and that the team is championship material.
For the Cavaliers and LeBron James, they wanted to tell the Atlanta Hawks that although they are currently fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 39-25 win-loss card, they are only one game behind the second-running Chicago Bulls and just half a game behind the Toronto Raptors currently at third spot.
Short of saying actually that at the end of the season, the two of them would end-up 1-2 in the Eastern Conference and that everybody would eventually find out in the playoff who between them is the new Beast from the East.
Rousing win
The Atlanta Hawks posted a rousing win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, 106-97, as forward Al Horford had another big game that was ably complemented by the hot hands of guard Kyle Korver who caught fire on the final quarter, reports MSN News.
The game was the fourth and final meeting for the two teams this season. Cleveland took the first game. But Atlanta won the next three including the last game on March 6, which pretty much put an exclamation point to its status as a championship contender come the playoffs.
Horford topscored for the Hawks with 19 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and two steals in a night when the team honored its greatest player, Hall-of-Famer Dominique Wilkins.
Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said that he was happy that they won to complete the great night for Dominique and the fans of the franchise.
The Hawks was still trailing the Cavaliers at the start of the fourth quarter but Atlanta started the final quarter with a 17-4 run behind Kyle Korver’s two three pointers that turned things around.
Forward Mike Scott also came off the bench to score 10 of his 14 points in the final quarter and helped the Hawks pull away from the Cavaliers for their sixth straight win.
Lost focus on defense
Cleveland Cavaliers coach David Blatt attributed their loss to the Atlanta Hawks to the team’s inability to sustain its defensive focus and intensity which it showed in the first three quarters.
He also said that the Hawks got into their rhythm on the fourth quarter and there was no stopping them from turning the game around.
LeBron James appears to be not in his normal self in the game. He finished with 18 points, eight assists, six rebounds, and nine turnovers. After the game, James said that five of his nine turnovers were unforced while four were attack turnovers. He promised to do better in not turning the ball over in the team’s next games.