The Atlanta Hawks will travel to the Verizon Center to face the Washington Wizards in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Friday, May 15 and can be seen on ESPN.
The Wizards are expecting a better outcome after their 106-101 loss to the Hawks on Monday. Bradley Beal was the game’s leading scorer with 34 points. Jeff Teague led the team in scoring by registering 26 points on 9-for-20 shooting.
In terms of effective field goal percentage, this game will match strength against strength when the Hawks have possession. Their sharp-shooting offense is ranked third in the league in that metric at 52.7%, while Washington is fifth-best in the NBA in effective field goal percentage defense (48.1%).
The odds for Washington and Atlanta are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is currently not available. The Wizards come into this game 46-36 Straight Up (SU) and 33-47-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They find ways to win against the Southeast, with a SU record of 10-6. ATS, however, they are only 4-11-1.
In the other locker room, the Hawks have 60-22 SU and 49-32-1 ATS records. Against fellow division members, Atlanta has a 12-4 SU and a 9-6-1 ATS record. The Hawks rely heavily on three-pointers on offense, ranking fifth in the league with 818 made (10.0 per game). The Hawks are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking third in the NBA at 1.91. Moving on to Atlanta’s defense, teams with weak ball handling have not fared well against the Hawks, who rank fifth in the league with 9.1 steals per game. Atlanta is the fifth-best team in the league at scoring points off turnovers with 18.2 per game.
The Hawks’ win over Washington in their last clash brought the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU over the last 10 meetings. On the other hand, the Hawks hold the advantage ATS with a record of 6-3-1. Over the last 10 matchups, Atlanta held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers twice. Washington performed this feat one time.
Predictions: SU Winner – ATL, ATS Winner – ATL
Notes
Washington 6-2-1 SU in its last 9 games.
Washington is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington’s last 5 games at home.
Washington is 8-16-1 SU in its last 25 games, when playing Atlanta.
Washington is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Atlanta.
Washington is 1-3-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington’s last 6 games when playing at home against Atlanta.
Ranked zeroth, Washington puts up 0.0 points per game. On the other hand, Atlanta allows 0.0 and also ranks zeroth (in points allowed).
Washington and Atlanta are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per home game and points allowed per away game respectively. Washington puts up an average of 0.0 points per home game, while Atlanta gives up 0.0 points per away game on average.
The Wizards have a 39-10 record when they allow fewer than 100 points. The Hawks, however, have performed well when they don’t hit triple digits, with a record of 20-13 in such contests.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Wizards are just 7-26 this season. Atlanta is a superb 40-9 when it reaches the century mark.
The Wizards have an offensive rating of 101.1 (ranked 22nd). The Hawks rank eighth for their defensive rating of 100.7.
Washington averages 97.4 possessions per game, scoring 1.011 points on each possession. While Atlanta averages fewer possessions per game with 96.5, the team scores more points per possession with 1.063.
The Atlanta Hawks have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking third in the league with an EFF% of 52.7%. When their opponents record a similar or higher EFF%, the Washington Wizards have a subpar 4-15 record.
Atlanta ranks near the top of the league in assists at second (25.7 assists per game). Washington is ranked sixth, with 24.0 assists per game.
The Washington Wizards average 4.6 blocks per game for a rank of 16th. The Atlanta Hawks rank higher (15th), earning 4.6 blocks each contest.
The Washington Wizards rank 19th in offensive rebounding, while the Atlanta Hawks rank 22nd in defensive rebounding.
Atlanta averages 9.1 steals per game (ranked fifth). Washington is 18-16 when allowing at least 9 steals.
