The Atlanta Hawks came into Tuesday night's game against the Washington Wizards knowing that they had to win. They did everything to ensure that they did as they defeated Washington 106-90 without their floor general John Wall.

Atlanta got off to a hot start, outscoring the Wizards 28-20. Washington was without All-Star point guard John Wall and was replaced by Ramon Sessions in the starting lineup.  Sessions had a solid game as he provided the Wizards with 21 points in 40 minutes of action. However, it was easy to see how much Wall's absence affected the Wizards offensive attack.

The second quarter was tighter as Washington had a 26-to-25 scoring advantage. Dennis Schroder for the Hawks had nine points and four assists off the bench.  Schroder was able to get to the rim and slither his way to the free-throw line. 

At halftime the Atlanta Hawks led the Washington Wizards 53-46. Could they keep up their offensive production in the second half?

The second third quarter was good to Washington, as they won it 29-27. Wizards guard Bradley Beal had 20 points and seven assists in 43 minutes of action.  He often exploded to the basket, leaving no doubt about how healthy his ankle is.  DeMarre Carroll had himself a big game with 22 points, six rebounds and four assists.  Carroll provided a spark for Atlanta and helped propel them into a huge fourth quarter. The Hawks put up 26 points to the Wizards 15 in the last frame, helping them close out Game 2 on top, 106-90. Jeff Teague only played 33 minutes in this game, but had seven rebounds and eight assists to go along with nine points. The frontcourt duo of Paul Millsap and Al Horford scored 18 points apiece and combined for 15 rebounds, 11 assists and seven steals.

Paul Pierce was solid once again for Washington with 15 points, but it was Otto Porter Jr. who came off the bench and provided the team with his 15 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. Atlanta's bench did not perform very well, but they hit big shots when they mattered.  Pero Antic only had eight points, but he hit a huge three in the fourth quarter to help secure the victory.  Kent Bazemore also hit multiple big three's for Atlanta.  Both of those bench players helped cool down a Wizards run with three minutes to go in the game.

With the series shifting back to Washington, Game 3 is completely up for grabs. However, if John Wall plays in Game 3 the Wizards can easily take a 2-1 series lead.