NBA | Atlanta’s crowd-pleaser
ATLANTA - The stands were packed, and the home team made every big shot down the stretch. Could this possibly be an Atlanta Hawks game?
Josh Smith scored 22 points, rookie Al Horford led a dominant performance on the boards and the Hawks beat another 60-win team from last season, holding off Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns 105-96 on Wednesday night.
Atlanta, which hasn’t made the playoffs since 1999, got back to .500 in a brutal opening stretch of games and added to its opening-night win over Dallas. Once again, the Hawks drew a sellout crowd to watch them beat a Western Conference powerhouse.
“The atmosphere here this year is incredible,” said Bremerton’s Marvin Williams, one of three Hawks to put up a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. “It really gives us a boost of confidence.”
Atlanta led throughout the second half, but the Suns were right there when Nash drove for a basket with 4:42 remaining. Williams responded by hitting back-to-back jumpers when left open at the top of the key.
“I guess it was my night,” he said.
Horford grabbed 15 rebounds to lead four Atlanta players in double figures. Smith had 10 rebounds for a double-double and the Hawks finished with a 56-40 rebounding edge, leading to a 29-9 advantage in second-chance points. Josh Childress also had 10 rebounds to go along with 19 points.
Nash scored 34 points, but Shawn Marion, with 20, was the only other significant offensive contributor. The Suns played their third straight game without Amare Stoudemire, who sat out because of a sore knee.
“We ran into a team that’s more athletic than we are,” Nash said.