The New Jersey Nets are on top of the Atlanta Hawks 44-43 at halftime thanks in large part to a dominating effort on the boards. The Hawks without Zaza Pachulia have offered little resistance as the Nets piled up a 29-17 rebounding advantage including 7-0 on the offensive glass.
Joe Johnson leads Atlanta with 11 points at the half on 5-11 shooting. Josh Smith has nine points and four boards but is just 3-11 from the field. The Hawks may need a superhuman effort from Smith on the boards in the second half. Jeff Teague hit 3-4 shots for seven points and has three assists at the break.
New Jersey made it a priority to try to attack Atlanta's Jeff Teague and Kirk Hinrich inside early on. Deron Williams leads all scorers with 12 points. Anthony Morrow came off the bench to score six while Kris Humphries has five points and six rebounds for the Nets.
For more on this game Hawks fans should check out Peachtree Hoops and Nets fans should stop by NetsDaily. For more news and notes from around the NBA head over to SB Nation's NBA Basketball Page.