Hawks 94, Pistons 79
Josh Smith had 27 points and 14 rebounds and the Atlanta Hawks shut down the Detroit Pistons in the second half on the way to a 94-79 road victory Monday night.
The Hawks (34-20) ended a two-game losing streak by limiting the Pistons (20-36) to just 28 second-half points, including 11 in the pivotal final period. Mike Bibby added 17 points for the Hawks, who had all five starters score in double figures in a successful opener to their seven-game road swing.
Tracy McGrady led the way with 14 points for the Pistons, who lost their third straight game despite shooting 10 of 19 from beyond the arc against the team with the NBA's best 3-point defense.
With the Hawks trailing by as many as 15 points in the second quarter, Bibby had five points during a 10-2 run that reduced the deficit to 43-36. Detroit extended the advantage back to 12 points before Atlanta countered once more, as Smith knocked down back-to-back late jumpers to put the Hawks up 53-51 at the half.
Bibby and Joe Johnson went to work early in the second half, draining consecutive 3-pointers as the lead grew to eight. Detroit kept the deficit to single digits throughout the third quarter but collapsed in the fourth, going more than nine minutes without a field goal as the Hawks' defense suffocated the reeling Pistons the rest of the way.