Atlanta defeated Washington for the twelfth consecutive time capturing a 99-92 win over the Wizards at the Verizon Center. Josh Smith and Marvin Williams both recorded double-doubles while helping pick up the slack due to Al Horford's absence from the lineup. Josh Smith scored 29 points and grabbed a game high 16 rebounds while Marvin scored 15 points while gathering in 12 rebounds.
After leading 52-46 at the half, the Wizards rallied to tie the score at 63-63 as the Hawks bogged down offensively. John Wall made his presence felt in the third quarter pushing the basketball ahead where he either finished the play or found easy opportunities for teammates. Atlanta countered with a small lineup featuring Josh Smith at the center position with Williams, Damien Wilkins as the forwards. The defensive results were good as the Hawks slowed down Nick Young who finished the game with 21 points but only five of those coming after halftime. After going to the small lineup, Atlanta was able to keep a hand in the Wizards face, forcing them into some tough shots and then were able to corral the defensive rebound.
Josh Smith's 29 points led the way for the Hawks while Joe Johnson finished with 21 of his own. Jamal Crawford had a tough shooting night going 3-12 from the floor finishing with nine points but did have a team high five assists.
The biggest difference in this game was at the free throw line where the Hawks were 26-35 for the night. Conversely the Wizards were just 8-18 with John Wall going just 2-7 from the charity stripe. The Wizards actually out shot the Hawks from the field connecting on 51% of their shots and hit one more three pointer. However, it wasn't enough to overcome the advantage at the free throw line or the rebounding margin that Atlanta built in the second half.
The win puts the Hawks one full game in front of the Orlando Magic for fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 33-18. Atlanta is back home on Tuesday night when they play host to the Philadelphia 76ers at the Highlight factory.