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The Atlanta Hawks started slow but came on strong late to defeat the Sacramento Kings for the 10th consecutive time 122-108. After falling behind by as many as 13 points in the first quarter, the Hawks outscored the Kings 61-45 in the second half.
Atlanta struggled out of the gate thanks to a rather lackluster defensive effort and the sterling play of Sacramento point guard Isaiah Thomas who scored 19 of his game-high 30 points in the first half. Atlanta trailed 33-25 after one but the Hawks trimmed the lead to just two at the break trailing 63-61.
The second half began much the same way the first ended with the lead bouncing back and forth between the two teams. Jeff Teague's three pointer with 2:09 remaining in the third put the Hawks up for good as they continued to pull away in the fourth.
Six different Hawks scored in double figures led by Al Horford's 24 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Jeff Teague added 20 points, 12 assists and three steals while Josh Smith finished with 18 points and six rebounds. DeShawn Stevenson hit 5-6 attempts from three-point range and finished with 17. Devin Harris and Kyle Korver each pitched in 10 points off the bench.
Thomas hit 9-18 shots for his 30 points and threw in nine assists for good measure. DeMarcus Cousins was a beast inside finishing with 26 points and 13 rebounds. Tyreke Evans rounds out Sacramento scorers in double figures with 15.
After shooting a blistering 57 percent in the first half, the Kings cooled off to 43 percent for the game. They did finish 12-22 from deep which helped to keep the score close. Atlanta did a good job pushing the pace outscoring Sacramento 33-19 in fast break points. The biggest stat however was how the Hawks took care of the ball turning the ball over just six times in the game. Sacramento on the other hand finished with 16 turnovers which led to 24 points for Atlanta.
Up next for the Hawks is a six-game road trip that begins on Saturday in Milwaukee and will take them all the way to the west coast before they come back home.