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Smith, Horford lead Hawks past Wizards

Dec 29, 2011 - 4:55 AM Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Josh Smith and Al Horford each recorded double-doubles as the Atlanta Hawks thumped the Washington Wizards, 101-83, at Philips Arena.

Smith scored 15 and had 10 rebounds while Horford netted 11 and grabbed 10 boards. Joe Johnson scored 18 and Marvin Williams scored 17 and pulled down eight rebounds for the Hawks, who were coming off Tuesday's season-opening win over the Nets.

Nick Young scored a game-high 21 off the bench and John Wall scored 20 and dished out six assists for the Wizards, who have dropped two straight to begin the season.

Atlanta never trailed in the contest after going on an 19-4 run to open the game. Johnson scored nine of his 18 over this stretch after knocking down a trio of three-pointers. The Hawks led 26-17 at the end of the first.

The Wizards cut the deficit to two, 33-31, in the second stanza after Rashard Lewis knocked down a three from the wing, but the Hawks outscored Washington 14-5 over the last five minutes of the first half to stay in front, 55-42.

"It was a slow start, but I thought our second unit came in and played well," said Wizards head coach Flip Saunders. "They really got us back in the game at different times. That main unit is not performing well together, but I thought overall we competed."

Lewis sparked a 7-2 run to open the second half for the Wizards, but the Hawks went on a 13-2 run of its own to take a commanding 70-51 lead in the third.

Atlanta's 85-64 lead heading to the fourth was never seriously threatened.

"We got of to a good start tonight," Williams said."We always want to start of 2-0. We had a great camp and I think guys are really anxious to get out there and see what were made of against some of these other teams in the league."

The Hawks dominated the Wizards on the glass, outrebounding Washington 45-32.

Poor shooting also plagued Washington, which came within 12 in the final frame. The Wizards shot just 39 percent from the field.

Game Notes

Atlanta has won seven straight at home over Washington...All of the Hawks starters posted double figures scoring...Javale McGee had a double-double for Washington with 15 points and 12 boards.