| 13 March 2011
There are now 16 games left in the NBA regular season. The Hawks still sit in 5th spot in the East where they have spent the majority of the season. The clock is now ticking on the team to either make a move up or try to hold on to where they are now.
On Friday, the Hawks faced the absolutely sizzling Chicago Bulls and lost that game by 18 points. The Hawks led the game at halftime 50 to 48, but come the third quarter the Bulls turned up the defense and the Hawks were able to only put up 10 points in the entire third quarter. Derrick Rose poured in 34 points and the Hawks were never able to recover after the half. The first half they played well on both sides of the ball but after the half it's like they forgot how to play at all. With that loss the Hawks found themselves the recipient of a four game losing streak.
The Hawks rebounded on Saturday night versus the Trailblazers coming away with the 91 to 82 win despite struggling early in the game. Jeff Teague played the game as a starter and had 24 points and five steals on the night. Teague and Zaza both started the game for the Hawks and it took a while for that setup to start working. The Hawks were able to rally from a 38 to 35 halftime deficit and Jamal Crawford had all 20 of his points in the second half. Zaza started in place of Horford who was nursing a sprained ankle and was able to get six points and six rebounds helping the Hawks to out rebound Portland 40 to 34. The Hawks were 56 to 28 on points in the paint. The Hawks in the second half just kept driving the ball on Portland and had great success with it.
The Hawks had five players in double digit points including Teague with 24, Crawford with 20, Josh Smith with 14, Damien Wilkins with 12 and Joe Johnson with 11. The Hawks had nine offensive rebounds, 10 steals, seven blocked shots, and five blocked shot attempts. The Hawks were 51% from the floor, 42% from beyond the arc and 50% (a low number for the Hawks) from the charity stripe.
Next up for the Hawks, Tuesday vs. Bucks, Wednesday vs. Nuggets, Friday vs. Heat. The regular season is winding down and the Hawks need to keep on these winning ways. Let's Go Hawks!!
