Atlanta Hawks Weekly: Momentum And The Lead
By Adam McGee
Indiana Pacers – Saturday, April 19 (Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis)
The real business end of the season started on Saturday as the Hawks arrived in Indiana as the unfancied eighth seed, to face off with the team with the best record in the East, the Pacers. The Hawks had proven themselves capable of matching up with the Pacers in a couple of impressive regular season performances and this game proved no different. After a quick early burst from Indiana, the Hawks took control and never really let go.
Jeff Teague had an outstanding game, getting whatever shot he chose at will. With David West in foul trouble, Paul Millsap had a much more effective performance than he had in the teams previous meetings with 25 points. A big factor in Atlanta’s success was also the quantity of three point attempts they got. Many of these were for Kyle Korver who was outstanding on both ends of the floor. Defensively, he often denied Stephenson and George, and even twice managed to block Roy Hibbert‘s shot.
Banker’s Life Fieldhouse, and much of America, seemed stunned by the Hawks performance. The Hawks came out on top 101-93, and have stolen home court advantage going forward in the series.