Dejounte Murray contributed 21 points, with De’Andre Hunter adding 20, powering the Atlanta Hawks to a 110-93 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night, breaking their three-game losing streak.
Jalen Johnson recorded 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Clint Capela chipped in 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Hawks.
“We were all on the same page. Everybody was hungry to do better, and I think we did that from the first guy down, was talking to each other, was helping each other,” said Murray, who sank five 3-pointers, marking a career-high fifth straight game with at least four shots from beyond the arc. “We were active the whole game, and I think that was important for this great team to win.”
Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 28 points, followed by Paul George with 26. Los Angeles has now lost four of its last five games and currently sits in fourth place in the Western Conference.
“If you don’t play hard and compete, and you don’t take care of things you need to take care of on a nightly basis, you can lose. And so tonight was one of those nights,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue remarked.
Atlanta had a narrow 31-29 lead at the end of the first quarter but outscored the Clippers 30-15 in the second quarter, heading into halftime with a commanding 61-44 advantage. The Hawks shot 11 of 23 from the field in the quarter, while the Clippers struggled at 6 of 23, including 1 of 10 from beyond the arc. Capela led the Hawks in the first half with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Leonard had a strong start with 17 points in the first quarter, the second-most points he has scored in the opening 12 minutes of a regular-season game in his career. However, Atlanta responded with a 10-0 run to seize control of the game.
“I’ve got to give them credit. They started shrinking the floor and bringing in another guy towards me,” Leonard noted.
The Clippers managed to trim the deficit to six points midway through the third quarter, but the Hawks quickly regained momentum with a 17-2 run. A turnaround hook shot by Capela extended the Hawks’ lead to 61-40 with 2:15 remaining in the first half.
Hawks coach Quin Snyder praised his team’s defensive effort, forcing 16 turnovers, leading to 26 points, and holding the Clippers to a 37.8% shooting rate from the floor (28 of 74).
“Our players said some things to each other that we need to do on defense, and trying to be focused on doing those things. And then, offensively, really attacking this group. They’re a very good team, so I was happy with how we played,” Snyder said.
Atlanta reached its largest lead at 91-62 early in the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer by Hunter. Despite a late surge from the Clippers, they couldn’t narrow the gap.
James Harden returned to action after missing the Clippers’ last two games due to a left shoulder strain, contributing nine points and nine assists in 36 minutes.
