Atlanta Hawks at Utah Jazz
Wednesday, 1/5/11, 9:00 PM EDT
Atlanta tallied a 108-102 victory over Sacramento on Tuesday night and will now look to avoid being swept in the season series against Utah tonight. The Hawks are looking to close their four-game road trip with a third consecutive victory and were able to rest key players down the stretch against the Kings due to a 22-point fourth quarter lead. “I wanted to give our starters a rest since we play at Utah on Wednesday,” said coach Larry Drew. “But we stopped running, stopped defending and stopped executing.” The team has a 23-14 overall record, including a 7-6 mark against the Western Conference. The defense has been key to the squad’s recent play, allowing just 89.6 points per game over the last 10 contests. Atlanta is 1-4 ATS versus the Northwest division and make sure to check the NBA lines page for movement.
The Hawks offense has been solid throughout the season, ranking sixth in the league in field goal percentage, ninth in free throw percentage and seventh in assists. Atlanta desperately needs star guard Joe Johnson to start elevating his play, as fans have been upset with his performance since signing a major deal in the offseason. “Joe is Joe,” said Drew. “I know people are saying things about him being in a mini-slump or whatever, but he’ll be fine. And I know once he gets all the way back from that elbow surgery, he’ll do what we know he can do.” Johnson managed to score 28 points in last season’s win in Utah.
Utah is 24-11 overall and has compiled a 13-6 mark at EnergySolutions Arena heading into this exciting matchup. The Jazz pulled off a 102-97 win over the Pistons last time out by outscoring their opponent by a 13-6 margin in the final three minutes of the game. “We’re definitely confident in the fourth,” said point guard Deron Williams. “I just want to see us be confident in the first. You know, stop messing around.” Guard Raja Bell hit a key three-pointer in the final minute and sank two crucial free throws to help pull out the win. Utah is 7-1-1 ATS versus the Southeast division.
The Jazz are 48-39 all-time against the Hawks, including a 31-12 record at home and 17-27 mark on the road. Utah is 16-2 against Atlanta at tonight’s venue. It’s very important that the club scores over the century mark in contests due to a 17-1 record when reaching 100-plus points on the season. The team is also 19-4 when allowing under 100 points and 5-7 when giving up that many points to the opposition. Utah held Atlanta to 86 points on the road en route to a victory on November 12.
Bettors will be interested in the Hawks being 2-6 ATS in Utah, while the favorite is 12-4 ATS in the last 16 meetings.
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