Bucks 108, Hawks 101
BUCKS 108, HAWKS 101: Monta Ellis scored 17 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and host Milwaukee snapped Atlanta's four-game winning streak.
Brandon Jennings added 18 points and Drew Gooden had 16 as the Bucks halted a two-game skid and pulled within two games of eighth-place New York in the Eastern Conference.
Josh Smith had another huge effort in defeat for Atlanta with 30 points and a season-high 18 rebounds - his fifth double-double in six games.
Ellis, though, was the story. He was averaging only 12.2 points in six games since a trade with Golden State and was coming off a season low-tying four points Monday night.
The high-scoring guard scored six straight points to cap a 9-1 spurt as the Bucks pulled away from a 91-91 tie to take an eight-point lead.
With the Hawks trailing by a dozen points in the third, Joe Johnson scored nine points in a 17-4 closing run to give Atlanta a 79-78 lead entering the fourth.
Rookie Ivan Johnson had 17 points on 7-for-7 shooting for Atlanta, which dropped one-half game behind Indiana for fifth place in the East.
Smith scored 15 points in the second quarter to help the Hawks trim a 16-point deficit to 55-46 at halftime.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Bucks were without starting forwards Carlos Delfino (groin) and Ersan Ilyasova (back). Delfino was hurt in Monday's loss to the New York Knicks. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute started at small forward and Ekpe Udoh got the nod at power forward. ... Smith scored 20 points for the 13th time in 16 games this month. ... Ellis had his highest output since scoring 33 points against Memphis on Feb. 18.