Atlanta Hawks play Orlando Magic in first of back-to-back
By John Buhler
The Atlanta Hawks carry their three-game winning streak into Orlando to take on struggling Magic team at the Amway Center, the first of a back-to-back with the Orlando Magic.
The Atlanta Hawks look to continue their winning ways when they take on a reeling division rival in the Orlando Magic Sunday afternoon at the Amway Center. Tipoff is at 1:00 PM ET and the game will air on Fox Sports Southeast.
This is the first of a back-to-back with the Orlando Magic for the Atlanta Hawks, as these two rivals will conclude their four-game season series Monday night at Philips Arena. The Atlanta Hawks won the previous two meetings over the Magic, winning a close on December 20th, 103-100, and winning easily on January 18th, 98-81.
Entering play Sunday afternoon, the Atlanta Hawks are in a tie with the Atlantic Division’s Boston Celtics for third place in the Eastern Conference with identical 30-22 records. The Hawks are winners of three straight, are playing .500 ball in their last 10 games with a 5-5 record, and hold a 0.5 game lead over the Miami Heat in the Southeast Division race.
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Orlando sits in 12th place in the Eastern Conference with a 21-28 record, losers of nine of their last 10 games. The Magic are 7.5 games back of the Hawks in the Southeast and 4.5 games back of the eighth place Detroit Pistons for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Atlanta Hawks are making headway in the East with their top five defense. Atlanta is fifth in the NBA in defensive efficiency and seventh in points allowed. However, it has been the team’s work on the offensive end of the floor that has helped Atlanta win three straight and stay in the upper tier of the Eastern Conference.
Orlando likely isn’t going to lose over 50 games again in 2015-16, but the Magic are looking less like a playoff contender with every passing game. Head coach Scott Skiles had his team playing well defensively at the beginning of the year, but the roster is still struggling to find consistency, part of the problem of having a young team.
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Should Atlanta play well enough Sunday afternoon and Monday evening to pull off a four-game season sweep of the Orlando Magic, that would make it five straight wins for the Hawks. One would have to question if the Hawks are finally putting it all together just before next week’s All-Star Break. Let’s Go Hawks!