Hawks overwhelm downtrodden Nets

By Michael Cunningham

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The Hawks played their first game of the season without All-Star guard Joe Johnson, who stayed behind in Atlanta with a sore Achilles tendon.

It turned out that the Hawks were OK without Johnson in the starting lineup as long as they had Jamal Crawford on the bench.

Crawford’s 25 points included 15 in the decisive second quarter as the Hawks handled the flailing Nets 108-84 on Tuesday at the Izod Center.

The Hawks won their third consecutive game and seventh of nine while snapping a five-game losing streak in New Jersey. The lopsided victory allowed the Hawks to rest their starters late in advance of Wednesday’s game at the Raptors, who have lost five consecutive.

Guard Devin Harris (illness) was out for the Nets, who are threatening to finish with the worst record in league history, which is 9-73 and is held by the 1972-73 76ers.

“There are no ‘gimmes’ in this league,” Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. “We’ve had games like this where we came out on the other end. I thought our guys came out focused.”

The Hawks overwhelmed the Nets with a proficient effort that was free of drama. They took control in the second quarter and kept the Nets down after halftime.

“It feels good,” Crawford said. “They are down, but you can’t take anyone lightly. We are getting better at not giving teams a chance to put together a run and come back.”

The Hawks improved to 17-16 on the road, surpassing their road victory total from last season. The Nets lost their 12th consecutive home game and fifth in a row overall.

The Hawks started sluggishly and were tied 22-22 after a quarter. But they outscored the Nets 33-17 in the second quarter, capped by Crawford’s 29-foot 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer for a 55-39 lead.

“I told Mike [Bibby] if he gave it to me, I’d make it for him,” Crawford said of the shot.

Crawford made seven of 10 shots in the quarter and finished 11-of-18. Al Horford had 15 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high seven assists for the Hawks.

The Hawks livened the sleepy game by pushing the tempo in the second quarter. They got 18 rebounds to New Jersey’s seven and made 13 of 24 shots to five of 20 for the Nets.

The Hawks led 78-58 after three quarters and by as many as 26 points in the fourth. The game got testy when Nets forward Terrence Williams committed a flagrant foul against Mo Evans in the final moments.

Evans was attempting a layup when Williams sent him hard to the floor. Evans said Nets players told him they were upset he was trying to score with the shot clock off but that he thought more time remained.

“Don’t act like you’ve got all this pride when you are (7-60), you know what I’m saying?” Evans said. “If y’all have got a no-layup rule, then you wouldn’t be in this predicament. You’ve been getting disrespected all year.

“To his credit, [Williams] came up and apologized.”