Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal scored six quick points in an impressive 3.8-second streak that propelled the Washington Wizards to a 149-146 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night.
“Right now, we have nothing to lose,” Westbrook said. “It’s winning or coming home.”
The Wizards, down five points with the shooting clock turned off, had looked like they were heading for their fifth straight loss.
“Honestly, Ish (Smith) just told me to push and pull him,” Beal said after the game. “That’s all we could have done in this situation.”
It worked.
Beal ran down the track and pulled ahead to nail a triple that led Washington to two points from Brooklyn with 8.1 seconds left. As Nets striker Joe Harris was about to quickly introduce the ball to the baseline, teammate Kevin Durant headed for the basket. Poor communication allowed Garrison warrior guard Mathews to steal the ball around the corner and send it to Westbrook, who buried another 3 with 4.3 seconds to play.
With the Wizards clinging to a one-point lead, the Nets stopped. When the game resumed, the Nets guard, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, managed to see well the putting into play in the last two seconds of the match, but his attempt went over the edge.
Two free throws from Beal sealed Washington’s victory.
“We had this game,” Nets guard Kyrie Irving said. “It should be ours, so we look in the mirror and see what we can correct as individuals and as a group, especially with effort. Today I couldn’t protect a stick. Those guys were doing well around me, and I got a little frustrated. “.
The Nets led up to 18 points at the Capital One Arena and had three 25-point scorers at Harris, Irving and Durant. The Wizards and Nets ’combined 295 points were the second highest no-time game in the last 25 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
But defensively, Brooklyn continued to struggle. The Nets conceded 72 points in the paint, tied for the third most allowed in a game in the last 25 seasons, and the most allowed in a game since 2017. Beal managed to score 22 of his 37 total points in the fourth quarter. The Wizards outscored the Nets 12-2 in clutch time.
“It was the first game of the year I had White Claw,” said Wizards coach Scott Brooks. “I wanted to enjoy it. It’s a good feeling. I wanted our players to enjoy it. We fought. We fought a lot … We did it all year and the basketball gods gave us a break tonight.”
The Nets’ defensive problems allowed the Wizards to stay in the game. While the final sequence of the game seemed to be the high point of the Nets breakdown, Irving said Harris ’turnover and the subsequent 3 were a“ microcosm ”of the problems Brooklyn suffered all night.
“It doesn’t come out of a play,” Harris added. “But I mean at the same time, if I hadn’t done (billing), we wouldn’t be here talking about losses.”
Nets coach Steve Nash considered Harris’ turnover to be “an unfortunate moment,” but said he was not to blame for the loss.
“When you give up 149 points, it’s a mistake on about 50 defensive tackles,” Nash said. “So it’s not good enough defensively and we can see the loss of the squad or the turnover of the 3 there, but we shouldn’t have been in that position. We had a big advantage soon and we let them stay a long time, a long time until their confidence grew. They are a desperate group looking for a victory, and we gave them a chance and gave them life. “
For Durant, “This is one you just got rid of.”