So what if they can't beat the San Antonio Spurs in Texas. The Atlanta Hawks are home again against a familiar foe that they have beaten quite a bit lately. The Hawks return to the "Highlight Factory" to take on the Indiana Pacers on Saturday night (7:00 PM, SportSouth, 93.7 FM). Atlanta has won seven straight over Indiana, including a 102-92 win on Nov. 16.
The Hawks (15-9) return home after a quick trip to the Alamo, where like the much like the Texans in that famous fort during the 19th century skirmish, Atlanta didn't have much of a chance against the NBA-best San Antonio Spurs. Jamal Crawford had 23 and Al Horford added 18 for Atlanta, which dropped its 13th straight game to the Spurs in Texas.
To put things into perspective, the last time the Hawks won there, Dominique Wilkins was wearing a Spurs jersey and Bill Clinton was holding press conferences in the White House. Not even the return of Dominique to the AT&T Center as a prognosticator and Clinton's wrestling away the podium from President Obama in the White House briefing room could break the streak.
The curse got worse as Josh Smith sat for part of the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury. He expects to play on Saturday.
The Pacers (11-10) are coming off of a 100-92 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Friday and are looking to improve to two games over .500 for the second time this season. Look for a big night from Danny Granger, who is averaging 28 points over his last three games at Philips Arena.
Atlanta is just 2-6 against teams with a .500 or better record this season.