DETROIT(AP)- All five Piston starters reached double figures in scoring and the Hawks weren\'t able to rebound from their horrid first half shooting, as they fell to the Pistons, 97-88.
The Hawks shot just 16-53 (30 %) in the first half and they trailed 51-36 at halftime. They forced turnovers and scored lots of points in transition in the third quarter, as they cut the once 15 point lead to 5.
\"We came storming back in the third quarter, and we simply manhandled them for a 5 minute stretch,\" Head Man Mike Woodson told reporters. \"They really kept us in striking distance to win, but unfortunately, we couldn\'t pull this one out.\"
Joe Johnson and Josh Smith led the charge with a combined 49 points. Johnson tallied 27 points and Smith added 22. The only other Hawk to reach double figures was rookie center Al Horford, who netted 15 points along with 12 boards.
The Pistons did not have one player score over 20 points, but have five players over 10. Richard Hamilton and Chauncey Billups each had 16, Tayshaun Prince added 14 and Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess netted 12 points apiece.
The Pistons bench outscored the Atlanta bench 27-12, which probably could have been the deciding factor in the game. Atlanta seemingly lost all its momentum when the bench gave the starters a rest midway through the 2nd Quarter. During this period of time, the Hawks were outscored 15-2.
The Hawks were very close until the 4 minute mark of the 4th, when the Pistons went on a 10-0 run to pretty much seal the deal.
The Hawks will head to Philadelphia to face the 76ers and the Pistons head west to take on the struggling LA Clippers.
