Hawks 94, Bobcats 91: Josh Smith scored 13 of his 17 points in the third quarter and finished with a team-high 13 rebounds as host Atlanta secured its first six-game winning streak in two seasons.
Al Horford collected 17 points and 11 rebounds and Lou Williams also scored 17 points for the Hawks, who have defeated the Bobcats on six straight occasions overall and 10 of their last 11 at Philips Arena.
Charlotte's Ben Gordon drilled five of his seven 3-pointers during his franchise-record 20-point fourth quarter. Gordon finished with 26 points and Ramon Sessions added 18 for the Bobcats, who suffered their second straight loss while trying to surpass last season's paltry win total of seven.
After Gordon's final 3-pointer brought the Bobcats to within one at 92-91, Atlanta ate up all of the 24 seconds on the shot clock before Williams misfired from beyond the arc.
With five seconds remaining, Sessions turned the ball over on an inbounds pass and Horford made two free throws to extend the cushion to three. Byron Mullens attempted to force overtime as time expired, but his 3-point attempt caromed off the back iron.
GAME NOTEBOOK: After being held scoreless in his last game, Charlotte G Kemba Walker finished with 15 points despite going just 4-of-15 from the field. ... Hawks G Kyle Korver exited the contest in the third quarter with back spasms. He did not return. ... Atlanta G Devin Harris returned after being sidelined with a sore big left toe and scored seven points.
Charlotte | Atlanta | |
Ben Gordon 26 | Scoring | Al Horford 17 |
Ramon Sessions 8 | Assists | Al Horford 6 |
Brendan Haywood 11 | Rebounds | Josh Smith 13 |
Ben Gordon 5 | Free Throws Made | Al Horford 3 |
Ramon Sessions 2 | Steals | Josh Smith 3 |
Bismack Biyombo 4 | Blocks | Josh Smith 5 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Charlotte | 91 | 39.5 | 12-24 | 19-23 | 18 | 45 | 7 | 6 | 17 |
Atlanta | 94 | 40.0 | 12-32 | 10-15 | 28 | 44 | 9 | 9 | 9 |