Houston Rockets (42-27) beat Atlanta Hawks (38-32) 117-95 at home on Friday, March 20. The final margin was 22 points.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Rockets struck first, taking the opening quarter 35-27 and a 8-point lead after one. The teams matched each other with 27 points apiece in the second quarter; the Rockets still led by 8 at halftime.
The Rockets won the third 39-22 to create some separation, taking a 25-point lead into the fourth. The Hawks took the fourth 19-16; the Rockets held on for a 117-95 regulation win.
Why it was lopsided
The Rockets got more from their shots, finishing at 59% effective field-goal shooting compared with 47.6% for the Hawks. The Rockets grabbed 30% of their own misses, while the Hawks recovered 18.8%. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Hawks did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 16.1 against 18.6. The Rockets made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 101 possessions per team, the Rockets produced 116 points per 100 possessions to 94.2 for the Hawks.
Who stood out
Kevin Durant was the game's biggest individual force for HOU: 25 pts, 3 reb, 6 ast on 9-15 shooting. His Game Score of 26.2 led everyone. His team was +25 with him on the floor.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker led the Hawks with 21 pts, 4 reb, 4 ast on 6-12 shooting, good for a 16.6 Game Score.
Alperen Sengun (15 pts, 9 reb, 10 ast) and Tari Eason (10 pts, 10 reb, 2 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 64% for the Rockets.
Across the last 3 meetings in our records, Houston Rockets lead 3-0.
The Rockets are now 42-27, and the Hawks are 38-32. The Rockets last five before this game: W-L-W-L-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.