Story By: Sol Tucker
Photos By: Sol Tucker
Washington, D.C–
Remember earlier on in the season when Kyle Kuzma rebutted the claim the Wizards weren’t going to be anything this season, well tonight, he continued to show fans and doubters that this team is anything but that with his 36-point effort that led the Wizards to a 124-121 victory over the Hornets.
”I’m just being really aggressive,” Kuzma said. ”I just put my head down and try to get to the rim, take an open 3 if it’s there. If not, not try to settle.”
Kuzma’ hit a 3-pointer with 1:10 remaining to give Washington a 114-113 lead. Beal added two free throws with 39 seconds left to put the Wizards up 116-113. Beal and Kuzma each added two free throws to secure the win.
The Wizards continue to make things happen with a squad of true scorers and few they have had to put on the floor due to quite a few players out for Covid protocols over the past few weeks. Every night, Kuzma has made a difference in keeping his team close and preventing teams from pulling back close in the final minutes as Charlotte tried to do tonight.
Washington erased a 14-point Charlotte lead in the third quarter and began the fourth quarter with 11 straight points.
The Wizards are also finally starting to get some production from Davis Bertans, who had struggled to get into the same form from the 2020 season so far this year. Tonight, he had 14 points, which included two huge three pointers during that 14-point run.
After the game Charlotte Head Coach James Borrego praised the way, the Wizards were able to hold off the run by LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier III, something they were unable to do in their last match-up. ”They played well. They made shots. We had plenty of shots to win this game tonight, and we just didn’t,” Borrego said. ”They made more plays, more shots than us tonight.”
With the win tonight, the Wizards will hopefully have a few guys back prior to the match-up against Houston on Wednesday night, which could include Raul Neto, who has been a big spark for the Wizards in several of the games in the early winning streak of the first few weeks of the season.
