There are only a handful of must-see games left on the schedule this season at Philips Arena, but among them is the matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Not only are OKC a solid team, but the past three matches against them were decided by three points or less.
The game wasn’t just hyped either, both the Hawks and the Thunder went the distance. It wasn’t until around eight minutes left in the fourth quarter that the Thunder began to pull away without letting up. The final score was 119-107 in favor of OKC.
The highlight of the match was OKC’s Russell Westbrook notching his 100th career triple-double (32 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists). While the milestone was something to celebrate, the Thunder were on pins and needles when Paul George went down (he left the third quarter with a groin injury).
Taurean Prince led the Hawks with 25 points and gave the best performance of the night for the club. The rookie John Collins had 10 points and a highlight-worthy dunk in the first quarter. Dennis Schröder played with a light injury (left elbow sprain) and still managed to put up 18 points along with eight assists.
The Hawks will regroup after last night and prepare for the Charlotte Hornets here at Philips Arena Thursday, March 15 at 7:30 pm.
-Jon J.
Photo: Hakim Wright