Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Joe Johnson paced an Atlanta attack that started strong and never let up with 25 points, as the Hawks increased their own playoff stock and kept the Lakers' celebration on hold with a 109-92 victory at Philips Arena.
Lakers End Road Trip With Lopsided Loss To Hawks, 109-92
The Hawks moved one game ahead of the Celtics for the third seed in the Eastern Conference, and improving their position at home has been a welcome test this season. They improved to 31-7 as the hosts, and dropped Los Angeles to 2-3 on its five-game road trip -- a jaunt that left the Lakers looking weary at its conclusion.
Maurice Evans scored 18 points off the bench, Zaza Pachulia added 10 points and 10 rebounds and Jamal Crawford added 14 points. All three of those players played 20-plus minutes of the bench, as the Hawks reserves outscored the Lakers bench, 48-22.
Atlanta won its ninth straight home game, the most since the days of the Omni in the 1996-97 season, and posted its 48th victory, the best total since the 1997-98 campaign.
Los Angeles had a chance to clinch the Pacific Division with a win and Phoenix loss but did not satisfy its end of the scenario despite Kobe Bryant's 28 points. Pau Gasol added 16 points and 11 rebounds and Ron Artest donated 15 points for the Lakers, who were without Andrew Bynum for the sixth straight contest due to a nagging Achilles injury.
The Hawks scored seven of the final 10 points in the first period to claim a 29-25 edge and the margin stood at 43-36 after Pachulia cleaned up a long Crawford miss with a deft tip in traffic.
After Artest’s fadeaway jumper brought the visitors within 45-42, the Hawks reeled off the next eight points, capped by a Pachulia free throw for a 53-42 advantage. The scoreboard read 55-45 after 24 minutes of game action.
Every time the Lakers challenged, moving within nine at 64-55 with a Bryant free throw, Atlanta emphatically answered. Seven quick points pushed the margin out to 71-55 on an Al Horford mid-range jumper and Evans' bucket moments later made the score 75-58.
An 80-64 lead after three periods grew to 18 at 84-66 on a Jeff Teague transition slam, and the Lakers never got closer than 12 the rest of the way despite making 9-of-14 shots in the period.
The teams split two meetings this season...Atlanta improved to 23-2 when shooting at least 50 percent from the floor. It made 54.2 percent of its shots, while the Lakers managed to convert on 45.8 percent of their attempts...The Hawks set a home attendance record this season, packing 20,190 fans into Philips Arena.
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