Story By: Erin Zollars
Photos By: Sol Tucker
Miami, FL–
After a another loss in Orlando on Friday night and quite a few comments on the live Instagram session with John Wall about him going out too much in D.C, well you can forget about all that nonsense as Wall led the Wizards with 28 points in a 116-110 victory over the Heat giving the Wizards their third victory of the season.
So what was the difference tonight? Well Wall not only carried the load, he actually had some support on both ends of the court for the first time this season.
What do you know, a total team effort. That’s something new in the NBA it seems like anymore. Wall certainly wasn’t having anymore of the nonsense and he is looking like if his team follows his guidance, they can actually get back on track.
For Miami, the team that sort of had their act together in the first half, looked like a totally different team that was dominated in the fourth quarter. With no Dwayne Wade late in the game, the Heat failed to find a shooter to get hot and buried themselves in the outside shooting by the Wizards.
“We just didn’t find our rhythm in the fourth quarter,” said Heat Coach Eric Spolstra. “Washington has a better team then they have been showing on the court and tonight we experienced what the Wizards are really capable of when their entire team is hitting shots.”
In the second half, Washington opened with a 5-0 run to take their first real lead of the game at 63-61. Most of this came from the success of finding Austin Rivers and Jeff Green open on the wings for open shots. Both Green and Rivers played their best games of the season so far, which limited action for Otto Porter Jr., who has struggled in the past three games.
The best thing for the Wizards is they return home for the next five consecutive games and if their scoring chemistry stays together, they should be able to turn this around before its too late.
