ATLANTA – Joe Johnson scored 21 of his 28 points in the third quarter and Mike Bibby handed out 14 assists to help the Atlanta Hawks beat the Los Angeles Clippers 117-93 on Friday night.

Josh Smith added 25 points for the Hawks, who stopped a two-game losing streak and won for just the second time in eight games.

Tim Thomas scored 18 points for Los Angeles, which has dropped two straight and 10 of 12.

The Clippers never came within single digits of the lead after Zaza Pachulia’s putback for Atlanta made it 30-19 late in the first quarter.

Leading the Hawks in scoring for the seventh straight game, Johnson surpassed 20 points for the 39th time this season. He was 7-for-9 from the field in the third quarter, including 6-for-6 on 3-point attempts.

AP-ES-03-14-08 2222EDT