The AP reports: Give Josh Smith a perfect 10 in his personal dunking contest. And give the Atlanta Hawks some credit: The team that was supposed to get swept by big, bad Boston in the opening round of the playoffs pulled off a win that was nine years in the making. The high-flying Smith scored 27 points and the Hawks earned their first playoff victory since 1999, beating the Celtics 102-93 Saturday night to cut Boston’s lead in the series to 2-1… “We’re not satisfied,” said Joe Johnson, who added 23 points for Atlanta… The Hawks took control in the third quarter, outscoring the Celtics 28-18 and limiting Boston to 5-of-21 shooting. Atlanta went on to its first playoff win since May 16, 1999, a Game 5 clincher over the Detroit Pistons… Rookie Al Horford was a force on the inside. He had 17 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and showed he wasn’t afraid of the mighty Celtics, jawing with Paul Pierce in the final minute. Kevin Garnett led Boston with 32 points, but the NBA’s youngest playoff team had him kneeling over, looking totally exhausted, by the end of the game.
