Hawks-Bobcats Preview

By TAYLOR BECHTOLD
Posted Nov 22 2012 9:51PM

Already the biggest surprise of the young season, the Charlotte Bobcats believe this is only the beginning.

The Bobcats will try to record their best start in the nine-year history of the franchise and match their entire win total from last season on Friday night when they host the Atlanta Hawks.

Just one season removed from finishing with the worst winning percentage in NBA history at 7-59, Charlotte (6-4) has enjoyed a stunning turnaround, winning five of six after a three-game skid.

The Bobcats also started 6-4 during the 2007-08 season.

"We're trying to build a winning culture here, and every win helps," first-year coach Mike Dunlap said.

While it took Charlotte 40 games to reach six wins last season, Dunlap's club captured its sixth victory already Wednesday night, when Ramon Sessions hit a go-ahead 16-footer with 28 seconds left to beat Toronto 98-97.

Kemba Walker had 19 points and seven assists, while Sessions and rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each had 14 points. Walker and Sessions have both scored in double figures in all 10 games.

Walker leads the team with 18.8 points and 5.5 assists per game.

"He's setting the culture for us," Dunlap said. "There's a lot on his plate, but he can handle it."

The Bobcats have stepped up defensively during their hot streak, holding opponents to 91.5 points in that six-game span. They rank among the league's top ten in steals (86) and blocked shots (76) and are forcing 14.6 turnovers per game.

Charlotte put together an impressive defensive stand with two blocks in the final seconds of Wednesday's win, running its record to 5-0 in games decided by four points or fewer.

"I think our defense is getting better and I'm selling that first and foremost," Dunlap said. "It's far from where it needs to be but it's getting there and we have the numbers to prove that."

Reaching that landmark seventh victory might not be easy for the Bobcats, with the Hawks (6-4) having won three straight and four of five.

They did, however, need, a 3-pointer from Kyle Korver with 1.9 seconds left in overtime on Wednesday night to get past winless Washington 101-100.

Josh Smith led Atlanta with season highs of 25 points and 12 rebounds, Korver added five 3-pointers and Al Horford had 15 points, a career-high 10 assists and nine boards.

The Hawks, who rank fifth in the NBA in scoring defense (92.1), will try to hold an opponent under 100 points through regulation for a 10th straight game. It could happen against a Bobcats team that shoots 42.2 percent from the field and is 29th in the league with 47 3-pointers.

Atlanta will likely need a better performance on the boards after getting outrebounded 58-37 by the Wizards. Rebounding, though, has been an issue all season for the Hawks, who rank 26th in the NBA with 39.9 per game.

"We know we have to go down there and be prepared," assistant coach Lester Conner said. "A lot of people have been going down there and taking (Charlotte) for granted, so we can't allow that."

Atlanta has averaged 112.3 points in winning the last four meetings, including three straight victories by 20 or more points.

Horford leads Hawks to 101-91 win over Bobcats

By STEVE REED
Posted Nov 23 2012 10:46PM

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Atlanta Hawks coach Larry Drew warned his team to take the Charlotte Bobcats seriously and forget all about their record last season.

It sure looked as if his players were listening.

Al Horford had 26 points and 13 rebounds, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Charlotte Bobcats 101-91 on Friday night for their fourth consecutive victory.

Horford called it one of Atlanta's best games of the season.

"They are a lot better this year and it's a division game," he said, "so this was a good win for us."

The Bobcats were an NBA-worst 7-59 last season, but entered Friday night's game winners of five of six to raise their record to 6-4 this year.

Horford was 13 of 17 from the field, helping the Hawks score 50 points in the paint. Kyle Korver hit 4 of 6 3-pointers and finished with 16 points. Jeff Teague added 13 points and 12 assists.

"Jeff did a great job of finding me and getting me easy baskets," Horford said. "He kept finding me time after time and all I had to do was just finish plays."

Horford was particularly effective in the pick and roll.

"We were hedging on the pick and roll and our backside didn't pick him up on his roll, so that is where he hurt us," Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap said. "He's a power down there."

Said Drew: "I saw that (Horford) was in a rhythm and wanted to really try to ride him as much as I could."

The Hawks (7-4) led most of the game. The Bobcats got within six in the fourth quarter, but the rally fizzled from there as Horford scored the game's final four points to seal the win.

"I thought my guys did a good job accepting the challenge against a team that certainly is headed in the right direction," Drew said. "I thought we came out in the very beginning and we set the tone about how we wanted to play and what we wanted to do."

Charlotte was led by Ramon Sessions, who had 22 points. Kemba Walker added 16 points and nine assists. Walker and Sessions have scored in double digits every game this season.

Jeffery Taylor, the Bobcats' second-round pick, set a career high for the third straight game with 16 points. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, another rookie starter, had 11 points and seven assists.

Dunlap said he's convinced Taylor is going to be a "very good player," particularly for a team that places so much emphasis on defense.

"For me, the coach is telling me to be aggressive on offense and I'm trying to learn and pick my spots and play off the other guys," Taylor said. "Defense has always come pretty easy to me. I welcome any challenge. It's fun to play defense. I think it's fun to try and stop the other team's best player."

The Bobcats committed 15 turnovers leading to 19 Atlanta points in a sloppy game for both teams. Atlanta turned it over 22 times, leading to 22 points.

"We didn't take enough advantage of those," Dunlap said.

The Hawks built a 57-51 lead at the break behind Horford, who had 16 first-half points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field.

The Bobcats struggled to find anyone who could guard Horford, using four different players in an attempt to shut down the 6-foot-10 center. Horford still found ways to score and the Hawks shot 57.1 percent from the field in the first half.

"I feel like when we play through me a lot of the times it opens up things for other guys as well," Horford said.

Smith had an off night, shooting just 4 of 12 from the field, but contributed a season-high eight assists.

All that mattered to him is the Hawks were able to get a win.

"Anytime you get a win like this you're definitely playing hard," Smith said. "We knew what we were getting ourselves into facing this basketball team. I've been watching games on them and I understood that we had to put our hard hats on to play."

Smith said the Hawks, who have won five of six after a 2-3 start, are starting to put things together as a team after some roster turnover this past offseason.

"We're starting to find ourselves and figure out where our spots are on the floor," he said. "We're playing very unselfish and that's all we can do is keep finding a way to gel and play like a cohesive unit."

NOTES: Kidd-Gilchrist had a career-high four blocked shots and reached double digits in scoring for the eighth time in nine games. ... It was Teague's second double-double of the season. ... Charlotte dropped to 4-1 in conference play. ... The Bobcats visit Washington on Saturday night, while the Hawks host the Los Angeles Clippers.

Notebook: Hawks 101, Bobcats 91

Derek S. Smith, For NBA.com
Posted Fri Nov 23, 2012 10:51 PM - Updated Fri Nov 23, 2012 10:51 PM

THE FACTS: Al Horford scored a game-high 26 points and added 13 rebounds as the Atlanta Hawks picked up a 101-91 victory of the Charlotte Bobcats Friday night at Time Warner Cable Arena. Jeff Teague added 13 points and 12 assists in the win for the Hawks, who are now winners of four straight. Ramon Sessions paced the Bobcats with 22 points.

QUOTABLE: "The guys did a great job of finding me tonight. They set me up with easy baskets and I was able to just score. It was a big game and we really came out focused."

-- Atlanta center Al Horford

THE STAT: Atlanta (7-4) made a season-high 11 3-pointers Friday on just 22 attempts. The team shot 50 percent from behind the arc and three players (DeShawn Stevenson, Kyle Korver and Teague) make at least three trifectas. The Hawks came in shooting 33.8 percent from behind the arc and averaging 7.6 makes per game.

TURNING POINT: The Hawks took a time out after the Bobcats (6-5) had trimmed the lead during an 8-0 spurt late in the fourth quarter. Out of the timeout, Horford slipped past Byron Mullens and scored on easy dunk after a nice pass from Josh Smith. The Hawks and Horford added a bucket on the following play to put the game out of reach of the resilient Charlotte squad.

QUOTABLE II: "We really needed a basket at that particular point. We came out of the huddle and we executed. Josh made a great pass down low to Al for the dunk."

-- Atlanta coach Larry Drew

HOT: Horford had a monster game for Atlanta Friday. The Hawks center scored 26 points on 13-for-17 shooting with a game-high 13 rebounds. He also added two assists and three blocked shots. It was his fifth double-double of the season, and his third with 20 points or more and 10 rebounds or more.

NOT: The Bobcats' defense appeared to have turned a corner during the previous five games, but took a detour Friday night. Atlanta shot 53.8 percent from the floor, was 50 percent from the 3-point line and had assists on 29 of the team's 42 made field goals. The Hawks also shot 25-for-38 in the paint while racking up 50 points there. Charlotte also allowed 24 fast-break points.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Korver got it done from behind the arc against Charlotte. The Hawks guard got the start and poured in 16 points on 4-for-6 shooting from behind the arc and also added six rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots and one steal.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Anthony Morrow of the Hawks hails from Charlotte and attended nearby Charlotte Latin. He had a strong and loud contingent of fans in attendance. The Bobcats wore their dark blue uniforms in conjunction with them being offered in the team store for the first time on "Black Friday." Hall of Famer and Atlanta Hawks great Dominique Wilkins was in attendance at the game Friday as part of the team's TV broadcast.

ROOKIE WATCH: Charlotte guard Jeff Taylor had another career-high night with 16 points. He added two rebounds and three steals, while fellow rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 11 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and two steals.

NOTABLE: Bismack Biyombo suffered a left-leg contusion. X-rays taken at the arena were negative. Charlotte's Sessions and Kemba Walker have both scored in double figures in all 11 games this season for Charlotte. Walker had a season-high nine steals. Mullens scored in double figures in the fifth straight game and recorded a career-high six steals. The 22 turnovers by the Hawks were both a season-high for Atlanta and the most forced by the Bobcats in a game this season. Smith scored in double figures for the ninth time this season and recorded a season-high eight assists for Atlanta.

UP NEXT: For the Hawks, Saturday vs. Clippers, Wednesday vs. Charlotte, Friday vs. Cleveland. For the Bobcats, Saturday @ Washington, Monday @ Oklahoma City, Wednesday @ Atlanta.

• Hawks: Petro
• Bobcats: Henderson, Thomas

• Hawks: --
• Bobcats: --

• Lead Changes: 2
• Times Tied: 1

• Arena: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC
• Officials: #36 David Jones, #33 Sean Corbin, #68 Marat Kogut
• Attendance: 17868
• Duration: 2:09