Nickeil Alexander-Walker had a team-high 24 points and the Atlanta Hawks welcomed two new players to the action during a 124-111 road romp over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night in San Francisco.
Luke Kennard contributed five 3-pointers to a game-breaking run bridging the third and fourth quarters and finished with six from long distance and a season-high 22 points. Jalen Johnson had 23 as part of a double-double with 11 rebounds, helping the Hawks win their third in a row and their first with CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert in uniform.
Atlanta acquired McCollum and Kispert from the Washington Wizards last week in exchange for four-time All-Star guard Trae Young. McCollum contributed 12 points and four assists to his debut win in 24 minutes off the bench, while Kispert had two points and three assists in 14 minutes.
Stephen Curry led all scorers with 31 points and Jimmy Butler III added 30 for the Warriors, who saw a modest two-game winning streak come to an end.
After trailing by as many as 10 points in the first half, the Hawks led 72-71 nearing the midpoint of the third quarter before taking control of the game over the next seven minutes.
The run began with a 22-7 burst to end the third period, a stretch that included four 3-pointers by Kennard, including three in a row over a stretch of slightly under three minutes.
Up 94-78 at the end of three, Atlanta rendered the final 10:53 meaningless after Onyeka Okongwu drilled a 3-pointer and Kennard bombed in another, making it a 22-point game, 100-78.
Kennard wound up a season-best 6-for-9 on 3-pointers, helping the Hawks outscore the Warriors 45 to 30 points from beyond the arc despite taking three fewer attempts. With Curry going just 3-for-11, Golden State shot 23.8% from deep. Atlanta was 15-for-39 (38.5%).
Okongwu was the game’s leading rebounder with 12 as part of his own double-double with 18 points. He also had eight assists. Dyson Daniels just missed becoming a third Hawk to double up with 11 points and a game-high nine assists to go with seven rebounds.
Butler complemented his 30-point night with seven rebounds and a team-high six assists for the Warriors. De’Anthony Melton was a third Warrior with double-figure points with 10, while Draymond Green was the team’s leading rebounder with nine to go with five points and four assists.
