Atlanta Hawks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers: Hawks End Year With a Big Test

The Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers will end 2009 with back-to-back games.

The Hawks get to host the Cavaliers in the first game of the back-to-back tomorrow night at the Highlight Factory.

Then, the Hawks will travel to Cleveland to face the Cavaliers again on Wednesday, their final game in 2009.

The Cavaliers are winners of four straight, including a Christmas Day blowout win over the Los Angeles Lakers in LA. They returned home on Sunday and easily defeated the Houston Rockets 108-83.

During their four-game winning streak, the Cavaliers have won by an average of 17 points a game.

LeBron James has averaged 29.5 points per game during the win streak. In the blowout win against the Rockets, James only played in 29 minutes, giving him a chance to rest up before the back-to-back Eastern Conference showdown with the Hawks tomorrow.

With the Boston Celtics losing a close to one the Los Angeles Clippers last night, the Cavaliers are just half-game behind Boston for the top in the East.

Atlanta has not played since traveling to Indiana, where they beat the Pacers 110-98 on Saturday.

The Hawks remain in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They trail the Orlando Magic by only half-a-game and are just one-and-a-half games behind the Cavaliers for the second overall spot.

It is the first time that Atlanta and Cleveland has met since the Cavaliers swept the Hawks in the second round of last year’s playoffs.

During the regular season last year, the Hawks went 1-3 against Cleveland. James averaged 26 points per game.

Atlanta’s Joe Johnson had an up-and-down showing against the Cleveland last year. In the first two meetings, Johnson struggled heavily.

In the first regular season game against the Cavaliers last year, he scored a season-low four points and shot just .125 percent from the field.

However, in the next three games, both Johnson’s points and shooting percentage improved in each game. In game two, he had 17 points while shooting better than 40 percent from the field.

In game three he had 21 points and shot just under 50 percent. He saved his best game for last with 24 points on 61 percent shooting from the field.

Coverage begins at 7:00 PM EST on Sport South.