Joe Johnson

ATLANTA - Asked if he was happy with the number of touches he got in Game 4, Joe Johnson uttered just one word: "No," he said. That was all. Johnson took only eight shots in the 101-79 Game 4 debacle against the Celtics and made just four. That number of attempts was down significantly from the first three games, in which Johnson took 15 shots in Game 1, 17 in Game 2, and 28 in Game 3, the last total without power forward Josh Smith. "I don't think they're doing nothing different defensively on me," Johnson said.

The losses were a mix of bad shots, poor decision-making, and injuries. It was part typical Atlanta Hawks basketball - too much Joe Johnson isolation, for example - and part bad luck. What had been the best chance for the current Hawks to make a stand in the playoffs and move beyond previous chances ended Thursday night in an 83-80 loss to the Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round. "Obviously it's disappointing that we couldn't be able to do something special," Josh Smith said.

Joe Johnson scored 14 of his season-high 28 points in the fourth quarter, rallying the Atlanta Hawks to a 97-92 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night. Josh Smith had 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Jeff Teague added 15 points in the opener of Atlanta's five-game road trip. Brandon Jennings had 21 points and 11 assists to lead Milwaukee, and Mike Dunleavy added 17 points. However, the Bucks had no answer for Johnson in the fourth. He tied the score at 84 with a 19-foot jumper.

The losses were a mix of bad shots, poor decision-making, and injuries. It was part typical Atlanta Hawks basketball - too much Joe Johnson isolation, for example - and part bad luck. What had been the best chance for the current Hawks to make a stand in the playoffs and move beyond previous chances ended Thursday night in an 83-80 loss to the Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round. "Obviously it's disappointing that we couldn't be able to do something special," Josh Smith said.

Joe Johnson bounced back from a sluggish start to score 24 points and came up with a key defensive play down the stretch, leading the Atlanta Hawks to their fourth straight victory since losing All-Star center Al Horford, 92-89 over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night. The Hawks, taking over first place in the Southeast Division from Orlando, closed the third period on a 14-0 run, but the Trail Blazers responded with a 13-0 spurt starting the fourth to tie the game. It was tight the rest of the way. Atlanta was up 84-80 when a wild sequence went the home team's way. Jamal...

ATLANTA - The Celtics are down a game to the Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. And they could be down a point guard for Tuesday's Game 2 as Rajon Rondo was ejected after bumping an official in the final minute of their 83-74 loss Sunday night. Whether it was laziness, lethargy, or simply lack of commitment, the Celtics made a slow start to the postseason and did not recover until it was too late. From the start, the Hawks were active, aggressive, alert. The Celtics were AWOL.

There are many protagonists and key role players in the Celtics-Hawks playoff series. But the actors with the most lines have been Celtics captain Paul Pierce and the Hawks' Joe Johnson. Going into Sunday's Game 4, the Celtics hold a 2-1 advantage in what is turning into a shootout between Pierce and Johnson. Johnson has attempted the most shots (60) and Pierce is second (57); that is nearly a quarter of the 478 total attempts of both teams. Johnson is shooting 35.0 percent and Pierce 35.1 percent, an indication of the ramped-up defending by both teams.

Final: Hawks 97-92: Too much Joe Johnson and Josh Smith down the stretch but Atlanta coach Larry Drew was forced to reinsert the duo after the Celtics cut the lead to 4 in the final five minutes. Avery Bradley finished with a career-high 28 points. Fourth quarter, 32.3, Hawks 94-88: It looks like the Hawks are going to hold on as Josh Smith tipped in his own miss following the Celtics missing two shots that could have cut the margin to 2. Joe Johnson has 30 points for Atlanta and Josh Smith with 19. Fourth quarter, 2:07, Hawks 87-86: It's become exciting here at...

■When, where: Wednesday, 8 p.m., TD Garden. ■TV, radio: CSN, WEEI (850, 93.7). ■Scoring: Joe Johnson 18.9, Josh Smith 18.9, Jeff Teague 12.6. ■Rebounding: Smith 9.7, Zaza Pachulia 8.0, Al Horford 7.0. ■Assists: Teague 4.9, Johnson 3.9, Smith 3.9. ■Head to head: This is the second of three meetings. The Celtics won the first game.

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Rajon Rondo will replace Atlanta swingman Joe Johnson in Sunday's NBA All-Star Game, a league source said today. Johnson has an injured knee and will not play. Rondo is serving the second game of a two-game suspension because of throwing the ball at official Sean Wright during Sunday's loss to the Pistons. The suspension will end with tonight's game against the Thunder and Rondo is expected to be in Orlando to meet with reporters Friday. It will be Rondo's third All-Star appearance, and he was visibly disappointed about not being named to the team last week.

ATLANTA - The same word keeps coming up: aggressive. Jeff Teague says it. His teammates say it. His coaches say it. To be successful, the Hawks guard needs to be more aggressive, on defense, on offense, everywhere. "He's been aggressive, really aggressive the last month of the season, really," said teammate Marvin Williams. "When he plays like that, I think we're a tough team to beat. He's always pushing the ball. "He's always attacking the basket, trying to make plays for everyone else.

ATLANTA - As a result of losing Games 2, 3, and 4, the Hawks made changes to their lineup for Tuesday's Game 5. Because of Al Horford's torn pectoral muscle, it was a lineup that hadn't been seen in Atlanta since January. But it was one the team turned to for perhaps its last chance at finding answers. Horford was back in as a starter, along with Jeff Teague , Joe Johnson , Marvin Williams , and Josh Smith . This was the lineup the Hawks were supposed to have this season.

Al Horford is back in the starting lineup for the Atlanta Hawks as they try to avoid elimination in their first-round series against the Boston Celtics. Horford missed most of the regular season and the first three games of the playoffs after undergoing pectoral surgery. He made a surprising return in Game 4, coming off the bench for 12 points and five rebounds in a 22-point loss. With the Celtics leading 3-1, Atlanta made a couple of changes for Game 5 on Tuesday night.

TLANTA (AP) — Al Horford scored 19 points in his first start since January, and the Atlanta Hawks held on for an 87-86 victory over the Boston Celtics in a thrilling Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoffs Tuesday night. The Celtics lead the series 3-2 heading back to Boston for Game 6 on Thursday. If the Hawks can steal one on the road, the deciding game would be Saturday in Atlanta. Boston had a chance to clinch the series when Rajon Rondo stole Josh Smith's inbounds pass with 10 seconds remaining and raced down the court, looking for the winner.

ATLANTA - Asked if he was happy with the number of touches he got in Game 4, Joe Johnson uttered just one word: "No," he said. That was all. Johnson took only eight shots in the 101-79 Game 4 debacle against the Celtics and made just four. That number of attempts was down significantly from the first three games, in which Johnson took 15 shots in Game 1, 17 in Game 2, and 28 in Game 3, the last total without power forward Josh Smith. "I don't think they're doing nothing different defensively on me," Johnson said.

ATLANTA - Asked if he was happy with the number of touches he got in Game 4, Joe Johnson uttered just one word: "No," he said. That was all. Johnson took only eight shots in the 101-79 Game 4 debacle against the Celtics and made just four. That number of attempts was down significantly from the first three games, in which Johnson took 15 shots in Game 1, 17 in Game 2, and 28 in Game 3, the last total without power forward Josh Smith. "I don't think they're doing nothing different defensively on me," Johnson said.

The losses were a mix of bad shots, poor decision-making, and injuries. It was part typical Atlanta Hawks basketball - too much Joe Johnson isolation, for example - and part bad luck. What had been the best chance for the current Hawks to make a stand in the playoffs and move beyond previous chances ended Thursday night in an 83-80 loss to the Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round. "Obviously it's disappointing that we couldn't be able to do something special," Josh Smith said.