Sharpshooting Kyle Korver found his stroke and the Atlanta Hawks turned up their defence.
Korver fired in 12 of his 17 points in the decisive first quarter, and the Hawks stifled the visiting Boston Celtics 89-72 on Tuesday to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference opening round series.  
Korver bounced back, hitting 6-of-9 on field goals and 5-of-7 on 3-pointers after shooting a nightmarish 1-of-10 from the floor and 0-7 from behind the arc in Saturday’s opener.   
“I was probably more focused tonight,” Korver said. “I didn’t shoot the ball well in the first game but we all have pride, right? I had to shoot better in the second game.”
Fourth-seeded Atlanta started the game knocking down 9-of-13 shots, including six three-pointers, with Korver connecting on four from downtown.
On the defensive end, the Hawks held the Celtics to 1-of-10 shooting and raced to a 24-3 cushion with five and a half minutes left in the opening quarter.
The Hawks led 24-7 after one, sending the Celtics into the NBA playoff record books with the lowest scoring first quarter since the advent of the shot clock in 1954.
“It’s a credit to our players,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “Sometimes it’s hard to come out with that focus defensively, that kind of effort and maintain that defensive effort. The guys were everywhere.”
Budenholzer said Korver was key in the quick start. “Kyle, obviously with the big first quarter,” he added. “It’s big for us when he gets going.”         
Al Horford also netted 17 points, Jeff Teague scored 13 and Swiss Thabo Sefolosha had 12 off the bench for the Hawks, who set a playoff franchise record with 15 blocked shots in the wire-to-wire win against the fifth seeds.
“Our bigs are so fast with their hands,” Hawks Kent Bazemore said. “Our guards filter them down and they clean it up. They’re good at protecting the rim.”
After the big opening quarter, the Hawks stayed comfortably ahead in the final three stanzas, never letting the lead dip below double figures.
“We did it with defence, mostly,” Sefolosha said. Isaiah Thomas scored 16 points and Amir Johnson had 14 for the Celtics, who shot a frigid 32 per cent from the field and 5-of-28 from behind the arc.
“They started out great, they did a great job defensively and kept the lead the whole game,” said Celtics Evan Turner, who finished with 12 points. “We should never have seven points at the end of a quarter.”
The Celtics were doomed after the first quarter. “They completely outplayed us in every facet of the first quarter,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. “They were playing at a speed that we weren’t at.”
“We can’t afford to get off to starts like that. We have to be a lot better out of the gate on Friday,” he said.  The series shifts to Boston for Game 3 on Friday.
Elsewhere:
San Antonio Spurs 94, Memphis Grizzlies 68: Australian Patty Mills scored 16 points off the bench, NBA Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard had 13 and the Spurs crushed the injury-depleted Grizzlies to take a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference opening round series.
The second-seeded Spurs turned in another stellar defensive effort, holding the Grizzlies to a franchise playoff low point total after allowing just 78 in Saturday’s beat-down.
“It’s all about us,” Mills said, “where we are now and how we can get better”. Tony Allen scored 12 points, while Zach Randolph had 11 with 12 rebounds for the seventh-seeded Grizzlies, who shot just 32.6 per cent from the floor in their second consecutive lopsided loss. “We’re coming to a gunfight with spoons,” Grizzlies forward Matt Barnes said of the mismatch. Added teammate Vince Carter: “We’re playing a tough team and nobody is giving us a chance. We’re going to play carefree basketball and hopefully we can take care of business in game three.” The Grizzlies host Game 3 on Friday.