Atlanta Hawks rally around struggling Kyle Korver and over Rockets

Kyle Korver is mired in a bizarre shooting slump, but that didn't matter on Tuesday night as Atlanta came back from 19 points down to beat the Houston Rockets.

Dennis Schroder of the Atlanta Hawks reacts during his team's game against the New York Knicks in the NBA on Saturday. Erik S Lesser / EPA / December 26, 2015

With their star three-point sharpshooter stuck in an 0-for-18 slump, the other four Atlanta Hawks starters carried the load on Tuesday night.

In the 121-115 road win over the Houston Rockets, Atlanta overcame both a 19-point deficit and the detrimental shooting woes of Kyle Korver.

Al Horford had 30 points and 14 rebounds, Kent Bazemore had 26 points and Paul Millsap and Jeff Teague both added 22 as the Hawks won for the seventh time in eight games. Korver had just two points, making both free throw attempts.

Korver’s slump continued for Atlanta. After going 0-for-8 from the three-point line on Monday night in Indiana, he missed all 10 against Houston. Korver is 2-for-26 in his last four games, one of the worst shooting stretches of his career. After leading the league in three-point percentage last season at 49.2 per cent, Korver is having his worst shooting season in nearly six years, shooting under 39 per cent.

Despite Korver’s off shooting, he found other ways to contribute.

“Kyle was instrumental in letting us know to stay strong, keep playing and not get discouraged, and I honestly think that’s what put us over the top,” Horford said. “He’s going to do other things to help us. I’ll give him 10 more threes, and I’ll live with every one of them because he’s our best option.”

Korver was unavailable for comment after the game.

Atlanta took a lead late in the fourth quarter and employed a hacking strategy, intentionally fouling Dwight Howard and Clint Capela repeatedly. The strategy was largely successful until Howard made a free throw to take the lead with just over two minutes remaining.

Atlanta then scored the final nine points of the game to steal the road victory.

Howard led Houston with 30 points and 16 rebounds, while James Harden had 26 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

“We’re all frustrated,” Rockets coach JB Bickerstaff said. “We’re not getting the results we would like. There wasn’t a lack of effort. It wasn’t a lack of trying. Guys did the right things. We just didn’t make the plays when we needed to make the plays.”

Playing in their third back-to-back in less than three weeks, the weary Hawks allowed a season-high 41 first-quarter points. Houston led 71-56 at half-time, but Atlanta’s defence buckled down in the third quarter, cutting the lead to seven to enter the fourth.

Houston scored a season-high 71 points in the first half, thanks in large part to a 73 per cent clip from beyond the arc.

“We couldn’t guard them, we couldn’t keep them in front of us, they were very, very good, and they got everything they wanted,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “In the second half, I think we played better defensively, kept them in front of us better and had a lot of guys step up on the offensive end.”

Finger wag

NBA hall of famer Dikembe Mutombo was in attendance and sat courtside to watch two of his former teams. Mutombo, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in September, played five seasons with both Atlanta and Houston across his 18-year career. The 7ft 2in DR Congo native was famous for his wagging finger after blocking opponents.

Tavares spike

The Hawks bench enjoyed a hearty laugh late in the second quarter when 7ft 3in rookie centre Walter Tavares was fighting for a rebound with Dwight Howard and slapped the missed shot volleyball-style more than 30 feet into the second row seats. Tavares was taken out of the game for Al Horford and he couldn’t help but grin about the embarrassing play with his teammates on the bench.

“He made a few plays, rebounded and made a couple of plays he’ll learn from, and he’ll be better the next time he plays so it was great to see him get in a game,” Budenholzer said.

Other NBA scores

New York Knicks 108, Detroit Pistons 96

Memphis Grizzlies 99, Miami Heat 90 (overtime)

Oklahoma City Thunder 131, Milwaukee Bucks 123

Cleveland Cavaliers 93, Denver Nuggets 87

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