The Atlanta Hawks got off to a hot start taking an early 10-6 lead, but the second unit cooled the Hawks off and they were never able to recover. The Hawks had a 19-17 lead with two minutes to go in the first quarter and from there the Thunder took over. The Hawks went with a Lou Williams, John Jenkins, Anthony Morrow, Ivan Johnson, Zaza Pachulia lineup that struggled to create any offense. The Thunder had their second unit in, but got production from Kevin Martin (6 points), Jeremy Lamb (5 points), and the most unlikely of sources, Hasheem Thabeet (6 points). By the time the Hawks starters returned, the deficit had climbed to 32-23 and the Thunder's first unit had returned as well.
At the half, the Thunder have a 55-41 lead by 21 points, four assists, three rebounds, and two steals from Russell Westbrook and 13 points from Kevin Durant. Atlanta was led by Jeff Teague's 10 points, Al Horford's eight points, and Anthony Morrow's eight points off the bench. Atlanta was out-rebounded 25-15 and shot just 37.8% from the field and a dismal 27.3% from three-point range. The Hawks will have to find an offensive rhythm in the second half and find a way to disrupt Westbrook, who is getting whatever he wants.