Atlanta Hawks take down Trail Blazers to advance to quarter finals

The Atlanta Hawks took down the Portland Trail Blazers 88-65 to advance to the quarter finals of the NBA Summer League tournament.

As you might be able to tell from that final score, the Hawks thoroughly dominated in this one, thanks to some solid shooting from the perimeter and aggresive defense.

Adreian Payne continued to impress after scoring 19 points on 7-11 shooting. He scored 14 points in the first half on just seven attempts. Rookie Stephen Holt had an impressive performance in the absence of John Jenkins, scoring 15 points on 5-10 from the field and also going 3-4 from the 3-point line.

Comparatively, Dennis Schroder and Mike Muscala had rough days on the court as the two combined to go just 7-23 from the field. The difference between the two however is that Schroder is able to make an impact defensively against opposing guards, but Muscala’s defensive efforts leave much to be desired.

Here’s what our own Brad Rowland had to say about Muscala’s performance:

"Mike Muscala struggled a bit in getting his shots to fall, shooting just 5 for 14 from the floor, but the second-year big man continued to show off a varied offensive game, and his repeated ability to spin away from would-be defenders is encouraging."

Thanks to this win, the Hawks will play at 6:00 p.m. Saturday to continue playing for a Summer League championship.

We’ll keep you updated.