John Wall leads Washington Wizards to 98-92 win over New Jersey Nets
Point guard John Wall tallied 26 points, as the Washington Wizards made a late rally in the second half to overcome the New Jersey Nets 98-92, at the Verizon Centre on Sunday night. The result meant that the Wizards snapped their six-game losing streak and
also laid a good foundation for a five-game road trip commencing from Tuesday.
The Nets notched the lead early in the first quarter, as the Wizards let them run away with a 10-4 run to go ahead by 14-8. The Nets capitalised on their bright start and ended the first quarter leading by 32-20. Anthony Morrow remained the top contributor
for the Nets during the period. He scored 12 points including two swishes behind the arc.
The Nets continued their dominance in the second quarter, maintaining a double digit lead throughout the stanza. The Wizards were trailing by 56-39 just before half time, until Wall picked up the momentum, as he scored the last four points of the half and
reduced the deficit to 13 points at 56-43.
During the break coach Flip Saunders had some strong words with his team for playing sluggishly in the first half. The team talk seemed to work as the Wizards lifted their game in the second half.
Washington regrouped and launched a furious assault on the Nets. They outscored the Nets 28-12 in the third quarter. Jordan Crawford scored nine points in the third and his dunk with over a minute left to play put the Wizards ahead. The Wizards led the Nets
by 71-68 going into the fourth quarter.
Washington were leading by 77-70 in the fourth quarter, before the Nets made a surge and grabbed the lead again at 79-77. The teams were deadlocked at 90-90 inside the final two minutes. That was when Wall scored two baskets to make it 94-90 with just 46.5
seconds left. The Wizards then went on to seal the game at 98-92.
Wall scored 14 of his 26 points in the second half. He had a terrific all-around game with eight assists, six boards and four steals. Wizards coach Saunders was the one who encouraged Wall the most, especially since Washington were playing without four of
their key players.
Saunders praised Wall after the game. He said "It's starting to pay off. He's confident. We've lost games with John when he's trying to make plays, but he's not afraid to. If you want to be a great player in this league, you can't be afraid to take the ball
in your hands and try to make a play."
Crawford chipped in with 21 points, while JaVale McGee had 16 and Maurice Evans added 15 for the Wizards.
The Nets, who were also missing injured point guard Deron Williams, lost their third game in a row. In his absence, Brook Lopez led the way as he scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
On the other hand, Anthony Morrow hit 19 points, while Kris Humphries finished 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Nets. Jordan Farmar also added 10 points and 17 assists for New Jersey.
A disappointed New Jersey coach, Avery Johnson said, "I told our players, 'This loss was really painful. We were pretty good in the first half. In the second half, we weren't very good."
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