The streak has now been extended to four games for the first time since the six game win streak that lasted from December 8th until December 19th. The Wizards are catching fire at just the right time, and look for them to carry this hot streak into the playoffs as they are working on improving their playoff positioning.
At the half, Washington led Portland 60-40, and looked to be on route to an easy victory over one of the league’s top teams. Of course, the Wizards then began to play just like the Wizards that had shown up over the past few months, and almost blew the game. Instead of getting comfortable with these large leads, the Wizards need to begin to capitalize on large leads early, and put teams away as soon as possible so the starters can get some rest in the fourth quarter.
After losing the third quarter by 13 points, and having the lead cut down to 7, the Wizards were able to bounce back and win the fourth quarter by a point to seal the victory. In the third quarter, there was not much that stood out as something that needed to be fixed to help improve the performance down the stretch, but instead shots that usually fall were just not falling.
All five Wizards starters scored in double figures, and only three players were used off the bench for the team. The rotation looks like it will begin to be cut down as Randy Wittman looks to prepare his team for a playoff run late into the summer.
Nene, who proved to be a huge help for the team, came back to score 12 points after a two game absence for personal reasons. John Wall lead the team with a double-double that was just one rebound away from a triple double (21pts, 11ast, 9rbs).
Down the stretch, expect to see more playoff performances such as this one as the Wizards now know how they are going to need to play if they want to win some playoff games, and contend for a title. After showing they can beat the full roster of one of the league’s best teams, many now know the Wizards could look to make some noise in the playoffs.
