Raja Bell scored 24 points and the Charlotte Bobcats looked nothing like the NBA's lowest scoring team in beating the road-weary Atlanta Hawks 103-83 on Friday night.

Bell hit 9 of 12 shots, including 5 of 6 from 3-point range, Ronald "Flip" Murray added 15 points in his Charlotte debut, and Gerald Wallace offset a poor shooting night with 18 rebounds in the Bobcats' second straight win.

The Hawks struggled defensively and saw their two-game winning streak snapped at the end of a difficult trip that also took them to Los Angeles, Portland and Sacramento. Josh Smith and Jamal Crawford each scored 13 points, but combined to shoot 10 of 27 from the field.

The Hawks fell behind by 21 in the third quarter and scored only 14 points in the fourth.

The Bobcats, who came in averaging an NBA-low 79.8 points, had reached 80 only once in their first four games _ a double-overtime contest. But three days of practice following Monday's 79-68 win over New Jersey and Murray's return from a shin injury resulted in an efficient performance.

Crisp ball movement, heady passing and strong drives to the hoop helped Charlotte build a 77-56 lead on Bell's 3-pointer midway through the third quarter.

Bell, in his second game back after deciding to put off surgery for a partially torn ligament in his left wrist, hit his first five shots, including two 3-pointers. He stayed hot in the second quarter, hitting a 3 to put Charlotte ahead 59-44.

Murray scored seven points in the final 90 seconds of the third quarter against the team he played for last season, giving Charlotte an outside scoring threat it was desperately missing. Continued...