All those Lakers fans at Philips Arena who came expecting to see their team put on a show, instead witnessed why the Hawks are so hard to handle at home.
An arena-record crowd of 20,190 saw the Hawks rip the Lakers 109-92 on Wednesday. The Hawks extended their season-high home winning streak to nine games and beat the Lakers at home for the third time in a row.
The Hawks improved to 31-7 at home and moved a game ahead of Boston for third in the Eastern Conference.
“This is our home court, man,” said Hawks guard Joe Johnson. “We have to protect it no matter who we are playing.”
The Lakers are the defending champions and the top team in their conference. The Hawks can’t come close to matching those accomplishments, but they dominated the Lakers on this night.
“Any time you beat the Lakers, the defending [NBA] champions, it speaks volumes,” Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. “If we are committed for 48 minutes, we can beat any team in the league, I really believe that.”
The Hawks jumped the Lakers from the start and never let up. By the end, vocal Lakers fans had been drowned out by chants of “Beat L.A.” as Lakers star Kobe Bryant steamed on the bench.
“There were a lot of Lakers fans, but that’s to be expected,” said Hawks forward Mo Evans. “They’ve earned that. But it was good to have our fans cheer for us by the time the game ended. We definitely are going to need that support,”
They had a lot to cheer about as the Hawks ran away from the Lakers. The Lakers trailed 55-45 at halftime and could get no closer than 55-47 in the second half.
The Hawks sliced through the Lakers’ defense while shooting 54 percent. Seven Hawks players scored in double figures, led by Johnson’s 22 points, and the Hawks’ reserves outscored their Lakers counterparts 48-22.
The Hawks’ defense might have been just as impressive while limiting the Lakers to 43 percent shooting over the final three quarters. Bryant scored 28 points on 12-of-21 shooting but his teammates combined to make just 21 of 51 shots.
“I was satisfied with every part of the defense,” Woodson said. “Lamar Odom, [Derek] Fisher, [Ron] Artest, Kobe -- they all had to work for their points.”
The Hawks led by as many as 17 in the third quarter and were ahead 80-64 to start the fourth. The Lakers, listless on defense and out of rhythm on offense, never did get back in it.
The Lakers headed back to Los Angeles after suffering the worst loss of their 2-3 road trip.
“When you get a win against one of the marquee teams, it helps your confidence,” said Hawks forward Josh Smith. “It shows we can play with anyone.”
With a sellout crowd and energetic atmosphere, the Hawks had no problem getting off to a hot start.
Mike Bibby made his first three shots and scored seven points in the first quarter. Johnson and Jamal Crawford also had seven points as the Hawks led 29-25 after the quarter.
The Hawks weathered Bryant’s 14 points in the second quarter, and he scored only eight points after halftime.
“Guys got after it,” Hawks forward Marvin Williams said. “We took on the individual challenge to defend.”
