Bobcats travel to Atlanta

Who: Atlanta Hawks vs Charlotte Bobcats
What: NBA Basketball – Hawks Home Game
When: 12/13/12 at 7:30pm eastern
Where: Live at Philips Arena

The Matchup:

Previous Meetings:
11/23 – 101-91 – Recap – Boxscore

11/28 – 94-91 – Recap – Boxscore

Injuries:
Atlanta: DeShawn Stevenson – DTD; Kyle Korver – Out
Charlotte: Tyrus Thomas – Out


Starting Lineups

Quick thoughts:

• This is already the third meeting between the two teams this season, occurring just past the quarter pole of the year. The Hawks hold a 2-0 advantage, winning the first one without much trouble and then surviving the Bobcats (with some assistance from Charlotte) in the second. Is tonight the night the Bobcats end their losing streak of 9 games overall and get their first win of the year against the division rivals? As the Magic 8-ball says, “Ask again later.”
• I expect this to be a challenging game for the Bobcats for the same reason it was the last two times – Al Horford and Josh Smith are two very good big men, and the Bobcats start two inexperienced and still learning big men of their own. For one night though, if Byron Mullens engages his cover in a shooting contest, it may actually be to the Bobcats’ benefit, because as much as Cats’ fans groan at some of Byron’s three pointers, the Hawks’ fans have the same problem with Josh Smith.
• I’ll be curious to see how MKG responds tonight: He’s had a couple of quiet games against the Hawks so far this year, averaging just 8.5 points and 5 rebounds per game against them.