Washington, D.C–
It looks like the Wizards continue to make a strong push into the playoffs as the team that you do not want to face, just ask Brooklyn, as they saw a 10 point lead erased by John Wall and Drew Gooden tonight.
“You guys joke about me being old, but I’m still Drew Gooden,” the 32-year-old said. “And that’s what I do. Once I see a couple going in I feel like I can’t miss. Tonight the ball was definitely on my side and it dropped for me tonight.”
Gooden seems to be getting his form back and his 21 points tonight is the most he has had since back in his Cleveland days, some of which the Wizards know all too well in the playoffs.
“The longer we go here, the more games are going to feel like that. I thought the fans in the building were electric, all night,” Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. “Our guys played off of that and it was an intense game, there is no question about that.”
The Nets, who played one of their worst games in the fourth quarter this season and went the final 6:22 without a field goal. They were led by Marcus Thornton’s 19 points. Joe Johnson added 16 and Paul Pierce had 15.
“We got great looks, it just didn’t go down,” Nets coach Jason Kidd said. “We executed plays, I think we might have gotten a little frustrated on the defensive end, when we were giving up shots, and that led to the carry-over on the offensive end.”
Wall’s slam with seconds remaining in the game certainly made a statement for the night and possibly the next couple of weeks of the season. With any luck the Wizards will continue to hold the 5th spot for the playoffs and keep up the intensity past the first round of the playoffs.
The Wizards have a tough trek on the road with five games against Sacramento, Portland, Los Angeles Lakers and Denver before they return home to face the Suns on the 26th.
