Washington halts five-game skid
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WASHINGTON— It took facing a franchise with its own healthy share of dysfunction and injury for the Washington Wizards to finally win their second game of the season.
And even then, Sunday’s 108-95 victory over the visiting New York Knicks provided only limited reassurance the worst defensive team in the NBA, at least statistically, is close to correcting the maladies that have the Wizards in the draft lottery mix rather than for one of the top Eastern Conference playoff seeds they fancied themselves heading into the season.
“It’s a start,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. “It was a good win. When you have a losing streak, the games become heavier and heavier.”
Washington (2-7) ended a five-game slide while playing without starting forward Otto Porter Jr., who was inactive with a toe contusion and replaced by Kelly Oubre Jr. Porter missed practice Saturday, was a game-time decision Sunday and remains day-to-day, according to Brooks.
Minus one of their top 3-point shooters, the Wizards, with the exception of John Wall, misfired badly from beyondthearc, wereoutrebounded for the ninth time in as many games and allowed a rebuilding opponent to stay within reach into the fourth quarter in front of an announced crowd of 16,679 at Capital One Arena.
It wasn’t until a 16-2 surge after the score was tied at 86 with 9:13 to go that the Wizards could exhale before embarking on yet another road trip, this one for three games, beginning Tuesday. Washington recently had come back from its longest stretch of travel on the season, five games over nine days.
“No disrespected to the Knicks,” Wizards forward Markief Morris (16 points, six rebounds, five assists) said, “but they’re a young team trying to find itself. I think we’re supposed to [win].”
Wall scored a game-high 26 points with seven assists and made three of six 3-pointers in the first game of the season in which Washington limited an opponent to fewer than 100 points. Beal added 22 but went 1-for-7 from beyond the arc. Other than Wall, the Wizards combined to shoot 3-for-20 on 3-pointers.
The Knicks (3-7) got 18 points and 12 rebounds from Enes Kanter.
“I’m just glad we got a win,” said center Dwight Howard (10 points, team-high 10 rebounds), playing in his second straight game after missing the first seven with a lower body injury. “That’s the main thing. It’s tough one. Knicks have been playing pretty good basketball as of late. Wehaven’t been as good as wewant to.” Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. TV: NBCSWA