Horford helps Hawks down Thunder
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Al Horford netted 23 points and ripped down 12 rebounds as the Atlanta Hawks held off the Oklahoma City Thunder, 104-95, on Sunday at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Louis Williams scored 19 points, including 14 in the final quarter, while Jeff Teague helped the cause with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting to go with five assists.
Ivan Johnson contributed 10 points in a 12-plus minute run off the bench for the Hawks, who won their third consecutive road opener.
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"We're a good team and we're getting to know each other, so this is big for us," Horford said. "To win on the road gives us a lot of confidence."
Kevin Martin dropped in a game-high 28 points, Kevin Durant was a pair of assists shy of his first career triple-double, finishing with 22 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka donated 14 points each for the Thunder, who turned the ball over 21 times.
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"We shouldn't be going back and forth with them," Durant said. "We're a defensive team and our defense let us down tonight."
Trailing 81-79 with 7:56 on the clock, the Hawks took control of the game for good as Williams netted 10 straight points during a 12-3 run, allowing the Hawks to open a 91-84 advantage with 4:44 left.
A deep 3-pointer by Martin with 4:06 to go pulled the Thunder within two, but they did not get any closer as Atlanta held on for the victory.
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Down by five, 16-11, midway through the first quarter, the Hawks went on an 11-0 run. Teague tallied the final six points to give Atlanta a 22-16 lead. The Hawks took a 30-22 margin into the second stanza.
A layup by Zaza Pachulia with 5:38 left in the second frame gave the Hawks a 42-33 lead, but the defending Western Conference champs closed the first half with an 18-5 surge to take a 51-47 lead at the break.
Ibaka nailed a floater early in the third quarter to put the Thunder ahead, 57-48, but the visitors answered with an 11-2 push to tie the game at 59.
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Back-to-back treys by Westbrook made it a six-point game, but again the Hawks had an answer as a Horford layup capped a mini 7-1 push to lock things up at 66 with 3:46 remaining in the third.
It stayed a one-possession game the rest of the quarter as the Hawks took a 75-74 lead courtesy of a Williams jumper with 21 seconds left.
Game Notes
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Atlanta improved to 14-31 all-time in road lid-lifters ... Atlanta forward Josh Smith missed the game with a right ankle sprain ... Westbrook suffered a left shoulder contusion in the first quarter, but stayed in the game ... The Hawks shot just 14-of-20 from the free throw line.