<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>In a season already full of milestones, few stick out more than what the Hawks accomplished Sunday afternoon at Philips Arena. The Hawks finally found the answers for a Chicago Bulls team that has confounded them for years. The Hawks' 105-84 blowout win was long overdue and snapped a 12-game losing streak to the Bulls, six in a row on their home floor, for a team in desperate need of some positive energy. After receiving a double-dose of bad news Friday, when they lost a protest to Miami that cost them a Dec. 19 overtime win over the Heat and then lost another overtime nail-biter to Washington, the Hawks were prepared to do whatever it took to get past the Bulls. So they put on their track shoes, made sure Joe Johnson ran the first leg and blew the Bulls off the floor, defeating their nemesis from the Windy City for the first time since April 9, 2004. "It feels great," Johnson said after leading the Hawks with a game-high 37 points, nine rebounds and six assists. "This is my first time beating them since I've been here. Hopefully, we can build on this. We have a tough game against Denver [Tuesday]. We just have to key in and try to keep home court, and when we get on the road, we'll figure it out." Bring Sunday's game plan on the road and they shouldn't have any problems. Johnson got the Hawks rolling with 19 first-quarter points. He made 8 of 10 shots from the floor and jump-started the Hawks' attack as they rolled to a commanding 38-22 lead by the end of the first quarter, the most points they've scored all season in the opening 12 minutes. The Hawks (16-17) piled on in the second quarter with another 31 points, and they took a 69-49 lead into halftime. Not even an ugly 11-point third quarter could slow them down Sunday. The Hawks still piled up points on fast breaks (24-14) and in the paint (42-28) in dominating the Bulls. "Joe gave us a big boost," Josh Smith said. "Everybody got involved, and I think that's what got our momentum going." Said Johnson: "When your confidence is high, you're hitting on all cylinders. And that's what we had going." The Hawks also finally took a stand against the Bulls, who have routinely bullied the Hawks during the past four years of this series. Not only did they match the Bulls blow for blow, they also outrebounded them (54-40) and ran circles around them on the break when they could.</div> Atlanta Journal-Constitution
