Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Jock Landale has stepped up as fellow Australian Dyson Daniels rested an injury and their surging Atlanta Hawks claimed a valuable win in the push for direct entry to the NBA playoffs.
Landale was promoted to start in place of injured centre Onyeka Okongwu and rewarded coach Quin Snyder with a big performance – 19 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and two blocks – in a 123-113 home win over Sacramento on Saturday.
It was Landale’s first start since his impressive debut with Atlanta on February 5 following a mid-season trade.
Daniels has been dealing with a toe injury and was spelled as the Hawks backed up after a tough loss to Boston a day earlier, claiming their15th win in their last 17 games.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 27 points and the Hawks survived a late surge from the Kings, giving coach Snyder his 500th career victory.
Landale had rich praise for Snyder’s influence post-match.
“Quin’s incredible, honestly, and I don’t say that lightly,” he said. “He’s been instrumental in just kind of getting me up to speed with exactly what’s going on.
“He’s a great coach to play for, and I think that all 17 of us would say the exact same thing about him.”
Jalen Johnson had 26 points and 10 assists and Mouhamed Gueye had 10 points as he replaced Daniels in the Hawks’ last game against Western Conference opposition.
Sitting sixth – the last guaranteed playoff spot – in the Eastern Conference, the Hawks (42-33) are locked in a fierce battle to avoid the Play-In tournament and they face second-placed Boston again on Monday.
The win ensured the Hawks stay just ahead of Philadelphia (41-33) who rallied from 15 points down to edge hosts Charlotte 118-114.
Joel Embiid had 29 points and made a big block in the final seconds for the 76ers as they snapped the Hornets’ (39-35) five-game win streak.
Teammate Paul George, in his second game back from a 25-game suspension, finished with 26 points, as did Tyrese Maxey.
In Memphis, Australia’s Josh Giddey notched his 13th triple double of the season -18 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists – for Chicago in a 125-124 loss to the host Grizzlies in a clash of lowly-placed teams.
Giddey made two foul shots with four seconds left to pull Chicago within one point and they had a chance to win after the Grizzlies turned over the ensuing inbound pass, but couldn’t get a shot off in time.
Detroit strengthened their hold on the top seed in the Eastern Conference with a 109-87 away victory over injury-riddled Minnesota.
Tobias Harris led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points and Jalen Duren had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Pistons, who have won nine of their last 11 games.
The Pistons (54-20) moved to a five-game lead over Boston.
– with AAP and Reuters
