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Getting through Atlanta was something to celebrate for some playoff drivers

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Getting through Atlanta was something to celebrate for some playoff drivers


HAMPTON, Ga. — A sense of relief pervaded over pit road for many after Sunday’s playoff opener at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Because, quite frankly, it could have been worse.

They could have been Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr. and Chase Briscoe. All three finished 35th or worse.

While Joey Logano — who entered the playoffs seeded ninth — celebrated the victory and moved on to the second round of the playoffs, even Ty Gibbs could crack a brief smile after watching a chance to win turn into a 17th-place finish.

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Joey Logano moves on a year after he was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Gibbs holds the final transfer spot with races left at Watkins Glen and Bristol in the first round. Those are viewed by many as wildcard races because of the tire wear that is expected at both events.

Even sitting on the cutline is a move up for Gibbs. He had entered the race last among the 16 playoff drivers in the standings.

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Gibbs led with four laps to go to the scheduled distance and was in position to give the series its second first-time in the past three weeks.

But one wrong move changed everything.

“I was a little frustrated in myself because I didn’t block and just kind of put myself to the back,” Gibbs said. “So it’s my fault. Frustrated about that, but I’m just glad that we got good points and finished the race, honestly.”

Gibbs left the track with a one-point lead on Brad Keselowski, the first driver below the cutline.

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Joey Logano advances to the second round of the playoff with his victory.

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Daniel Suarez was in position to sweep the Atlanta Cup races but finished second. After celebrating at this track in February, standing on pit road didn’t feel as good. Still, he went from 11th in the standings entering the race to ninth. He’s 22 points ahead of Keselowski.

“Honestly, right now, I don’t care about points,” Suarez said. “It’s just hard that we’re not in Victory Lane, but that’s part of it. Maybe there is a couple of things I could have done better.”

Ryan Blaney finished third, scoring a race-high 53 points and went from fifth in the points entering the event to first afterward.

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“Even though we don’t advance automatically, we had a great day,” he said. “Winning a stage, second in the other, running … third today. That’s a really good day.”

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Joey Logano scored his second victory of the season.

It was much better than others. Larson entered as the points leader because he had more playoff points than anybody else. But he finished 37th after an early crash and fell to 10th in the points. He’s 15 points ahead of Keselowski.

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Chase Briscoe couldn’t avoid Larson and damaged his car beyond repair. Briscoe finished last in the 38-car field and fell to last in the playoff standings. He’s 21 points behind Gibbs.

“We just have to go win,” Briscoe said. “That’s what we had to do at Darlington and I know we’re capable of doing it again, so we’ll just have to go to Watkins Glen and Bristol and try to do the same.”

Truex is in a similar position after an awful day. He is 19 points behind Gibbs after finishing 35th. Truex was among three Joe Gibbs Racing cars that started at the rear after changing plug wires before the race. He had a pit road speeding penalty and his car was damaged when he hit Ryan Blaney’s car after Chris Buescher had hit Blaney on Lap 206.





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Atlanta, GA

Golden State takes home win streak into matchup with Atlanta

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Golden State takes home win streak into matchup with Atlanta


Atlanta Hawks (19-21, ninth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Golden State Warriors (21-18, eighth in the Western Conference)

San Francisco; Sunday, 8:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Golden State will try to keep its three-game home win streak alive when the Warriors face Atlanta.

The Warriors are 13-5 on their home court. Golden State is 9-12 against opponents over .500.

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The Hawks have gone 12-10 away from home. Atlanta ranks second in the league scoring 17.6 fast break points per game. Nickeil Alexander-Walker leads the Hawks averaging 3.9.

The Warriors average 15.9 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.8 more made shots on average than the 13.1 per game the Hawks give up. The Hawks average 14.5 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.4 more made shots on average than the 12.1 per game the Warriors allow.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jimmy Butler III is averaging 19.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.9 assists for the Warriors. Stephen Curry is averaging 25.7 points and 5.1 assists over the past 10 games.

Onyeka Okongwu is averaging 16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists for the Hawks. Jalen Johnson is averaging 21.1 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Warriors: 7-3, averaging 120.1 points, 42.5 rebounds, 30.4 assists, 8.9 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 47.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.0 points per game.

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Hawks: 4-6, averaging 116.9 points, 42.4 rebounds, 31.9 assists, 10.1 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 47.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.0 points.

INJURIES: Warriors: Seth Curry: out (thigh).

Hawks: Kristaps Porzingis: out (achilles), Zaccharie Risacher: out (knee), CJ McCollum: out (quad), N’Faly Dante: out for season (knee), Corey Kispert: out (hamstring).

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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Atlanta, GA

Flood watch expands into metro Atlanta ahead of severe storm threat

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Flood watch expands into metro Atlanta ahead of severe storm threat


A powerful weather front is moving into metro Atlanta, prompting officials to expand flood watches as “wave-after-wave” of heavy rain threatens to saturate the region through Saturday.

The FOX 5 Storm Team warn that storm totals could reach four inches in some areas, with isolated spots in North Georgia potentially seeing up to six inches.

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Flood Watch in northwest Georgia

What we know:

A Flood Watch is currently in effect through Saturday evening for a large portion of North Georgia. The region is bracing for widespread rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches. Some areas could see locally higher amounts reaching up to 6 inches before a cold front moves through Saturday afternoon to end the threat.

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“The rain train is wide open and here it comes,” said FOX 5 Storm Team chief meteorologist David Chandley. “We got waves of rain tonight and storms. They’re going to be with us tonight and right on through Saturday.”

In the northwest, the watch includes Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Cobb, Dade, Dawson, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Haralson, Lumpkin, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Towns, Union, Walker, White, and Whitfield counties.

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Flooding risk, high winds

Local perspective:

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Thunderstorms expected overnight and into early Saturday morning are a primary concern. 

The primary concern for North Georgia remains damaging winds and heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding. While the threat of severe weather is lower Friday night, the FOX 5 Storm Team expects conditions to change as the front arrives Saturday morning.

“Flooding [is] possible in Northwest Georgia with that severe threat,” Chandley said. “I expect we may see some of those [flash flood warnings] across North Georgia late tonight and early tomorrow because that ground is going to be saturated.”

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A Level 1 “marginal risk” for severe storms has been issued for most of the area, though regions near Columbus face a slightly higher “slight risk.” Forecasters noted that while the atmosphere currently lacks the instability for massive thunderstorms, a “brief, spin-up tornado” cannot be ruled out on Saturday.

What’s next:

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Sunday: Windy and much colder, with highs struggling to reach the 40s and 50s.

Monday: Temperatures are expected to plummet into the 20s by Monday morning.

The Source: This article contains an original forecast by the FOX 5 Storm Team.

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Atlanta, GA

Serious crashes block Atlanta’s Downtown Connector, Lawrenceville Highway early Friday

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Serious crashes block Atlanta’s Downtown Connector, Lawrenceville Highway early Friday


A major crash involving eight vehicles shut down all southbound lanes of the Downtown Connector early Friday morning, causing significant traffic delays near University Avenue.

What we know:

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The crash was reported on Interstate 75/Interstate 85 just before University Avenue, with injuries confirmed at the scene. Traffic was being diverted off the connector at Interstate 20, Exit 247, while the entrance ramp from I-20 to the connector southbound was also closed. Drivers were advised to use Exit 56A to McDaniel Street or alternate routes including Metropolitan Parkway or Interstate 285. The scene was cleared and lanes began reopening around 6:30 a.m. FOX 5 Atlanta is waiting for a final report on what happened. 

A separate serious injury crash was also reported in DeKalb County on Lawrenceville Highway westbound between Montreal Road and Interstate 285. All lanes were blocked, and authorities said the incident involved a pedestrian struck by a vehicle. Both investigations were ongoing. The scene was cleared and lanes reopened around 6:45 a.m., according to Georgia Department of Transportation. 

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