The Hawks and Pacers have battled throughout the first half with little separating the two. The Hawks second unit was a big boost for the Hawks giving them a 21-11 edge scoring over the Pacers second unit. Atlanta's shooting 53.7% from the field, but has missed some open looks from the outside shooting 2-of-7 from three, including three misses from Kyle Korver who still struggles. Josh Smith took advantage of his size advantage early scoring nine first quarter points on four left-hooks in the lane and a free throw. Al Horford has also picked up his offensive game scoring nine, with six in the second quarter.
The Pacers have been led by David West's 14 points (12 in the first quarter) and Paul George's 10. The key currently for the Hawks has been their ability to keep the best rebounding team in the NBA to a minimum on the boards. Atlanta is tied with Indiana with 19 rebounds a piece, and Roy Hibbert has just two. (Paul George has 5 showing why he's 7th in the league in rebounding). Zaza has eight boards and has matched minutes with Hibbert.
Hawks have been successful with Smoove in the post and running pick-and-rolls with Teague/Lou and Horford to draw Hibbert out. We'll see if they can continue executing well on offense and knock down a few more from long-range to get a big win.