```
But the long cooling period indeed caused the Hawks' three-point shooters to lose their touch.
In the following rounds, the Hawks' three-point shots frequently clanged off the rim.
Finally, the Seattle SuperSonics stemmed the bleeding.
Finally, Gary Payton was granted salvation.
But by halftime, the SuperSonics were still down by 15 points.
Moreover, Roger had already racked up a half-time score of 22 points and 7 assists!
Today, Roger played as a ball-dominant core, so his stats were incredibly stunning.
Watching the West's second-ranked SuperSonics getting thrashed by the Hawks, and with Roger's explosive stats, Atlanta's fans were clenching their fists in excitement.
Tonight, the savior was surely going to reveal himself!
The SuperSonics thought their nightmare had ended; although they were trailing by 15 points at halftime, they believed the gap would eventually close if they maintained their double-teaming strategy.
