Hawks 105, 76ers 87

PHILADELPHIA — The red-hot Atlanta Hawks rested three starters Tuesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, but one of those who remained, center/forward Al Horford, more than made up for their absence.

Horford had the first triple-double of his eight-year career, logging 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, as the Hawks rolled to a 105-87 victory over the Sixers, Atlanta’s ninth straight win and its 23rd in the last 25 games.

Reserve guard Kent Bazemore added 17 points and guard/forward Kyle Korver had 15 for the Hawks, who at 30-8 own the Eastern Conference’s best record. Amid a stretch in which they will play four games in five nights, they rested guard Jeff Teague and forwards Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll.

It didn’t matter, as they shot 48.3 percent, nailed 12 of 23 3-point attempts and recorded 34 assists on 42 field goals. They also had a 47-35 rebounding advantage.

Michael Carter Williams had 20 points and nine rebounds to lead Philadelphia (7-30), which was seeking its first three-game winning streak of the season.

Horford, who recorded 17 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in the first three quarters, grabbed his 10th board with 9:04 left in the game, on a miss by Sixers forward Robert Covington.

Horford scored nine points in the first quarter, which ended with the Hawks holding a 25-20 lead, but guard K.J. McDaniels and forward Luc Mbah a Moute hit 3-pointers during a 10-3 Sixers rush early in the second quarter, enabling Philadelphia to forge a 30-30 tie.

The game was again tied at 33-33, but the Hawks closed the first half with a 16-4 flurry, one that included three 3-pointers in the final 1:13 — two by Korver, an ex-Sixer, and one by forward Mike Scott — to give Atlanta a 49-37 lead.

Horford had 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds in the half for Atlanta. McDaniels had 10 points to lead the Sixers, who shot just 33.3 percent in the half.

Atlanta pushed its lead to 21, at 74-53, on a 3-pointer by reserve guard Shelvin Mack, a former Sixer, with 48.9 seconds left in the third quarter.

The Hawks’ advantage swelled to as many as 24 in the final period.

NOTES: Sixers G Tony Wroten, who scored 10 points, left the game in the fourth quarter with a sprained right knee. … Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer, who, like 76ers coach Brett Brown, is a former San Antonio assistant, said there are “some similarities” between the style his team plays and that favored by the Spurs. “It’s just good basketball,” Budenholzer said. “Obviously San Antonio’s the team that’s done it well, but I think there are teams at every level, in every part of the country and in every league that do things well, that we all kind of want to steal from.” … The game was a homecoming of sorts for Hawks F Elton Brand, who played for the 76ers from 2008-12. “I know it’s winding down,” the 35-year-old Brand said of his career. “I’m enjoying riding the bus. I go to Utah, take a walk, try to get some lunch in the mountains or something, because I don’t know if I’ll be back there, you know what I mean? I’m enjoying it, though.” … 76ers G-F Hollis Thompson returned after missing the previous 11 games with an upper respiratory infection.