Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) – John Wall and the Washington Wizards made
yet another early-season statement, with the standout point guard dropping in
28 points to lead the way in a 91-78 triumph over the struggling Cleveland
Cavaliers.
Wall outshined Cleveland’s star-studded starting unit by hitting 12-of-20
shots and dishing out seven assists to go along with four steals and six
rebounds. His terrific performance, coupled with a strong defensive effort by
his Washington teammates, improved the rising Wizards to 8-3 on the young
season.
The Cavaliers, meanwhile, are still searching for answers after dropping a
third straight game to fall under .500 (5-6). Though LeBron James and Kyrie
Irving each deposited 22 points, Cleveland shot a subpar 36 percent as a team
and committed 19 turnovers that led to 24 Washington points.
Cleveland did hold a 21-17 lead late in the opening quarter behind 11 points
from James, but the Wizards scored the next 11 points and Cleveland was never
really in it from that stage on.
Paul Pierce had the final five points of a 7-1 run that staked Washington to a
48-35 lead with three minutes left in the first half, and the Wizards shot 52
percent from the floor over the initial two quarters to cruise into the break
owning a 55-42 advantage.
Wall totaled 11 points and five assists by halftime, with Kevin Seraphin
adding 12 points off the bench.
Cleveland made some brief headway early in the third quarter, closing within
60-53 when Anderson Varejao followed a Shawn Marion 3-pointer with a layup off
an Irving give. However, eight straight Washington points — the final six
coming from Wall — later in the period had the Wizards back up comfortably at
72-56.
The Cavs trailed 80-65 entering the fourth quarter, and any hopes of a
comeback were squashed by an awful offensive display over the final 12
minutes. Cleveland went a woeful 3-of-18 from the field and managed a mere 13
points for the frame, while never getting the deficit under double digits
until two Tristan Thompson free throws with 2:16 left cut the lead to 86-77.
James went just 2-of-8 after halftime, while Kevin Love didn’t score a point
in the second half after having eight prior to the break.
Game Notes
Wizards guard Bradley Beal contributed 12 points in 31 minutes off the bench
in his second game back from a broken wrist … Washington recorded its first
home victory over the Cavaliers since March 3, 2012, with Cleveland entering
the game having won its last four visits to the Verizon Center … The
Cavaliers are averaging a mere 88.3 points during their three-game skid …
Varejao finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.
