Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore (right) goes to the basket against Minnesota Timberwolves forward Chase Budinger during the second half of their game at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, on Sunday. The Hawks defeated the Timberwolves for the team’s 16th consecutive win.
AFP/New York
Paul Millsap tallied 20 points and six assists as the Atlanta Hawks won their 16th straight game with a 112-100 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday.
Atlanta established a franchise record with their 15th consecutive win on Friday night and have won 29 of their last 31 NBA games.
“We made a couple of big plays down the stretch and found a way to win when we didn’t play our best. That is a good sign,” said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer.
Millsap also had five boards and four steals in the win. Al Horford tallied 19 points, six boards and four assists, while Jeff Teague added 15 points and seven helpers for Atlanta, who hasn’t lost since being routed by the Milwaukee Bucks on December 26.
The Hawks previously won 14 in a row from November 16 to December 14, 1993, the last time they won a division title.
Thaddeus Young finished with 26 points, seven assists and six rebounds to lead the Wolves, who have dropped four consecutive contests and 20 of their last 22.
Minnesota have the worst record in the league with just seven wins.
The Hawks offence has been superb during the historic streak, scoring 100 or more points a dozen times.
Dennis Schroder’s layup in the final seconds of the first quarter staked Atlanta to a 25-24 lead going into the second, where Atlanta started to pull away in front of a crowd of 18,000 at Philips Arena.
The Hawks began the second on a 12-2 surge, in which Mike Scott’s three-point play preceded a Kyle Korver free throw which capped the surge for a 37-26 lead at the 8:47 mark.
Teague drained a pair of free throws just before the half to stake Atlanta to a 61-47 lead going into the break.
The Hawks were up 86-77 after three quarters and the Timberwolves were unable to get any closer than six the rest of the way.
