The formula was exactly the same as it has been in every game the Wizards have played since Nene joined the lineup just after being acquired at the trade deadline. This time, however, he and his new teammates didn’t overcook the final product.
After giving the playoff-bound Philadelphia 76ers a dose of newly habitual stifling defense and building a familiar big lead that never seems big enough, the Wizards never let up and used the clutch shooting of a returned friend from last season to snap a five-game skid with a 97-76 masterpiece victory in front of 18,066 at Verizon Center.
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“That was spectacular by our guys tonight,” Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. “The defensive effort we put forth tonight was just as good, if not better than what we’ve done basically the last seven, eight games.”
In holding the Sixers (28-23) to two points shy of their season low, the Wizards (12-39) extended their streak of keeping opponents under 100 points to eight games, matching their longest streak since 2003. With six different players registering at least three assists, they also finished just two shy of their season high of 28 for the team.
But all the unselfish work at both ends of the floor had gone to waste over and over again of late, starting with a 22-point blown lead at home against Indiana on Mar. 22. Washington also squandered a 16-point lead against Atlanta, a 13-point advantage against Detroit and an eight-point lead at the Pacers the night before.
On Friday, facing a Philadelphia team that had embarrassed them three times in a row already this season by an average of more than 21 points, Washington led by 23 themselves midway through the third quarter after back-to-back jump shots by Nene (16 points, eight rebounds, four assists) made the score 67-44.
When the margin had dwindled to 81-68 early in the final period after four straight free throws from Thaddeus Young (14 points), Nene fired a cross-court pass to Cartier Martin, who knocked down three of his career high-matching 20 points, a mere two days after he was welcomed back to the NBA with a 10-day contract.
“For a kid that’s been here for two days, not knowing what the hell we’re doing, I told him, ‘Don’t learn anything by Sunday,'” said Wittman.
Martin, who played 52 games for Washington last season before he was waived in April, had 10 points in the fourth quarter alone, his fourth 3-pointer of the night giving the Wizards an 89-72 lead with 4:24 remaining.
“We kept running, executing and getting the ball in the post,” said John Wall (nine points, six assists, six rebounds, three blocks). “We they double-teamed, we made the right passes and made shots.”
The Sixers found themselves on their heels after Washington closed the first quarter with a 9-0 run and held them to 15 points in the quarter, the lowest of any opponent since the season-opener. The second unit, led by Martin, Kevin Seraphin (14 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks) and Jan Vesely (six points, career-high 11 rebounds), then took control in the second quarter and finished the first half with more points as a group (28) than the Sixers’ starters (19), who finished the game with only Evan Turner (11 points) in double figures.
A one-handed flush from Vesely increased Washington’s lead to 48-29, and Wall’s 3-point play gave his team its biggest advantage of the half, 53-31.
The same team whose 103-83 blowout victory over the Wizards in January had been the final straw leading to the firing of Flip Saunders dropped from fourth to seventh in the Eastern Conference.
“I think that showed we’re a totally different team,” said Jordan Crawford (17 points, three assists, three steals). “They beat us actually five times, two in the preseason. To get this one this time was big.”
The Wizards also kept themselves mathematically alive for the final playoff berth, albeit by a single game, and dismissed any notion that they’d actually lose if pitted against NCAA national semifinalist Kentucky.
“Aw, man, that’s a joke,” Wall said of his alma mater. “The Wildcats are a great team, and I hope they win the national championship, but you can’t believe what everybody say.”
Washington’s only blemish on the night was losing both Nene and Trevor Booker to the same injury, a pulled fascia ligament in the left foot. Both players remain day-to-day, but Nene left the arena in a walking boot.
