Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – Jeff Teague had 28 points and six assists as
the Atlanta Hawks grabbed a 99-89 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
Paul Millsap had 15 points and 12 rebounds while Al Horford scored 14 points
for the Hawks, who had lost their previous two coming in.
“The point of emphasis is getting rebounds, coach stressed, getting down and
dirty,” said Atlanta forward DeMarre Carroll. “We can be too soft sometimes.
It has to be a team effort.”
Josh Smith scored 16 points with eight rebounds and five assists while D.J.
Augustin gave 14 points and five boards for the Pistons, who have lost their
past four.
“We’re just in a shooting slump right now,” said Smith. “We’re getting open
looks and shots at the basket. We just got to slow down and not rush it.”
Greg Monroe tipped in a shot at the buzzer to end the third quarter with
Detroit trailing 74-64.
The Pistons then opened the final frame with the first 10 points as Augustin
scored the final four to tie the game at 74-all with 8 1/2 minutes to play in
the game.
Atlanta took the lead back and held an 89-80 advantage after Kyle Korver hit a
short bucket and Jeff Teague followed with a 3-pointer to give the team a
nine-point lead with under five minutes to play.
That proved to be the back-breaker as the Hawks’ lead grew as high as 10 down
the stretch.
A 10-2 run from Atlanta in the first quarter paved the way for the team to
take a 29-25 lead into the second quarter, hold a 50-40 lead at the break.
Atlanta led by as many as 19 in the third quarter before taking a 10-point
lead into the final 12 minutes.
Game Notes
Carroll, who had 10 points and seven rebounds, had missed the previous four
games with a groin strain … Detroit plays in Milwaukee on Tuesday …
Atlanta plays at Washington on Tuesday … These teams split four games
last season … Monroe finished with 10 points in the game … Korver had
12 points, four rebounds and four assists.