Mike Scott leads Atlanta Hawks to 117-98 win against Cleveland Cavaliers
Apr 4, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward
Tristan Thompson(13) is defended by Atlanta Hawks guard
Kyle Korver(26) and center
Pero Antic(6) during the first half at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Mike Scott showed up big time in tonight’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and led the Atlanta Hawks to a 117-98 win with game-high 26-point performance.
It was a much needed effort from the forward. With this win the Hawks put a bit of distance between themselves and the Cavs, and also re-claimed their hold on the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference with the New York Knicks’ 90-89 loss to the Washington Wizards.
In his previous four games, Scott had just 16 points. Tonight he exploded in an extremely effecient way, going 12-13 from the floor in just 20 minutes of playing time. It certainly wasn’t a “stat sheet stuffing” night for him (aside from the points he had just two rebounds), but that hardly matters when he’s scoring at that rate.
In addition to Scott’s slump busting game, Jeff Teague got another double-double scoring 20 points and dishing out 12 assists. Lou Williams and Paul Millsap each added 16 points with the former shooting 3-5 from 3-point range, and the latter hauling in 11 rebounds for a double-double of his own.
Atlanta also limited Kyrie Irving to just 13 points on the night, which was a big deal. The star point guard made just six of his 15 shots, and was 0-3 from beyond the arc. He did have six steals which is impressive, but only managed four assists in what is largely a mediocre night for him.
This is a huge win for the Atlanta Hawks, and it might be the game they need to turn their recent slide around.