Make it five straight victories for the Atlanta Hawks. After the worst west coast road trip imaginable (including a 6-game losing streak), the Hawks are back up to .500 on the season. 

Tonight's outcome was no surprise. The Thunder have the worst offense (98.6 points per game) in the league. To make matters worse, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (ankle) didn't play. However, they scored 60 points in the first half. The Thunder were able to push the pace and get easy looks at the rim. 

The Hawks cut off access to the paint in the third quarter, where the Thunder scored just 11 points. Unfortunately for Thunder fans, this team just isn't winning games with jump shots. They went 39-97 from the field (40.2%) and a cringe-inducing 10-38 (26.3%) from three.

Hawks coach Nate McMillan said the team didn't make any defense adjustments. "I thought our guys just really locked in and started playing defense. We started getting pressure on the basketball. We did a better job of keeping the ball in front of us and not allowing them to break us down. We were able to establish our defense in the third quarter."

A significant reason for the Hawks defensive firewall was John Collins. 'John the Baptist' swatted 5 shots and made titled the game's balance thanks to his dominance in the lane.

On the other half of the court, the Hawks offense was purely unstoppable. Six players scored in double digits. The team shot 42-87 (48.3%) from the field and 14-34 (41.2%) from deep. 

Trae Young grew up attending Thunder games in Chesapeake Energy Arena (now known as Paycom Center). So the significance of playing his 'hometown' team was not lost on him as he dropped 28 points with his parents sitting courtside.

Following tonight's game, the Hawks travel to San Antonio to play the Spurs Wednesday night. As always, we will keep you updated with breaking news and analysis for your Atlanta Hawks.

Hawks Stats Leaders

Trae Young - 28 PTS, 6 AST

Kevin Huerter - 15 PTS, 5 REB

Bogdan Bogdanovic - PTS, 5 REB

Thunder Stats Leaders

Josh Giddey - 15 PTS, 8 AST

Lu Dort - 15 PTS, 5 REB

Ty Jerome - 15 PTS, 4 REB

Recommended For You

Solomon Hill Not Celebrating Thanksgiving

Hawks, UPS, GoodR Feeding Families

Trae Young Debuts New 'Snakeskin' Shoe

Like SI Hawks on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Hawks news!

More must-reads:

TODAY'S BEST
Thursday's NCAA men's tournament Sweet 16 takeaways: New faces going to the Elite Eight
Did breakup with J-Lo cost Alex Rodriguez the Timberwolves?
Draymond Green explains what happened with his latest ejection
Rob Manfred makes first public comments on MLB’s Shohei Ohtani investigation
Watch: Mike Trout hits first home run of 2024 MLB season off Corbin Burnes
Jets owner blasts report about alleged 'heated conversation' with HC Robert Saleh
Browns GM names player he wants to 'retain as long as possible'
UNC HC Mack Brown explains why ceiling for QB Drake Maye is 'so high'
Watch: Massive three-point swing helps No. 4 Alabama stun No. 1 North Carolina in Sweet 16
Watch: Diamondbacks set franchise record with 14-run inning
UConn continues historic run of dominance after rout of San Diego State
No. 2 Arizona beat themselves in Sweet 16 upset to No. 6 Clemson
Watch: Rangers' World Series banner unveiling leaves a lot to be desired
Watch: Kendall Diggs' three-run blast lifts Arkansas to victory over LSU
Watch: Juan Soto cuts down runner at plate to save game for Yankees
Royals' Cole Ragans sets franchise record in impressive Opening Day start
Guardians trade for two pitchers to round out Opening Day roster
Patrick Beverley's decision to play through his injury is a boost for Bucks
Corbin Burnes dominates in Orioles debut, significantly raises their ceiling
Watch: Base running error spoils Shohei Ohtani's first home Dodgers at-bat