Not now.
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer wants to see 76ers coach Brett Brown succeed. Just not when the good friends are facing each other.
And so the Hawks continued their recent dominance over the 76ers with a 110-93 victory Saturday night at Philips Arena. The Hawks have won six straight games over the 76ers, including all three meetings this season.
“I want him to do well … except when he plays us,” Budenholzer said before the game.
The Hawks (26-18) have won 11 of their past 13 games. The win, coupled with the Celtics overtime loss to the Trail Blazers, moves the Hawks within a half game of the third in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks also moved a season-best eight games over .500.
Paul Millsap led six Hawks in double-figure scoring with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds. He was followed by Kent Bazemore (16), Dennis Schroder (15), Dwight Howard (13), Malcolm Delaney (13) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (12). Howard had his 27th double-double of the season with 15 rebounds.
The improving 76ers (15-27) had a three-game win streak snapped and lost for just the third time in the past 11 games. Ersan Ilyasova led the 76ers with 21 points.
The Hawks took a 62-54 halftime lead after closing the second quarter on an 8-2 run. Millsap scored at the buzzer to give the Hawks an eight-point edge, their biggest lead of the game to that point.
The Hawks shot 70 percent from the field (16 of 23) in the second quarter. Hardaway had eight points in the quarter, making 3 of 4 shots, including back-to-back 3-pointers.
The Hawks pushed their lead to as many as 18 points in the third quarter. The 76ers got as close as seven points, 94-87, with a 17-6 run between the third and fourth quarters. The Hawks answered with an 11-3 run to take back control of the game.
