Game 2 Preseason Atlanta Hawks vs Orlando Magic at State Farm Arena on Oct 9, 2019. Photo courtesy of Carlita Duran

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Shifting the Momentum: Hawks Break Losing Streak with Home Win

By Yakiri Thomas / December 4, 2019
Atlanta, GA– The Hawks break a nine-game losing streak with a win against the Golden State Warriors on Monday night at State Farm Arena.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take it. It feels better coming in here than the last 10 games,” said Hawks head coach Lloyd Pierce. “It was a great opportunity to gather ourselves’.”
The Hawks were explosive in terms of scoring in the paint and outscored the warriors 60-54. Trae Young continued to lead the charge on scoring with 24 points, marking his 17th game as lead scorer this season.

Trae wasn’t the only one playing with intensity. Rookie De’Andre Hunter, followed close behind Young with 18 points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal. Hunter now ties Young for scoring at least one 3FGM in the past 13 games, second longest streak in Hawks history.

“I was just being aggressive and picking my spots,” said Hunter, who also celebrated his birthday on Monday. “I think we played together as a team, I think we played hard and competed. We came out with a ‘W’ so we just got to carry this over to the next one.”

The Hawks had hitched a ride on the struggle bus this season, and after Monday’s win improve their record to 5-16 and remain as the second worst team in the Eastern Conference.

“Anytime you can get a win, it feels good and we’re happy,” said point guard Trae Young. “We still have a long way to go.”

Only shooting 8 of 29 from 3-point range, the Hawks were also out rebounded by Golden State, 46-38. While the Hawks struggle to eliminate turnovers and fouls, bright spots like Damian Jones (eight rebounds) and Alex Len (4 rebounds) offer significant contributions to as presence in the paint.

The Golden State Warriors look less and less like themselves, with the worst record in the western conference. The Warriors shoot only 17 percent from 3-point range and committed 23 turnovers. Currently; Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and four other Warriors are out with injuries.

“We got some guys out, so we just got to play with what we got, that’s the biggest thing,” said Warriors point guard Ky Bowman. “Knowing that, each game we are getting better and trying to come out and get these wins for the rest of the season.”

Pierce hopes the win against the Golden State Warriors brings back the spirit for his team and they can carry it into the future.

“[The losses] are all the same, you hate the ones where you felt like you had an opportunity and you try to learn from where there was slippage and you had opportunities to take advantage of,” he said. “The next one is the same, can we create momentum off this win going into Wednesday’s game.”

The Hawks face the Brooklyn Nets in another home game on Wednesday at State Farm Arena and will have the chance to answer that very question.

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