– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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WASHINGTON — Only the top team in the Eastern Conference could stop the streaking, red-hot 9-41 Washington Wizards! Seriously!
And it took a late-game surge from the Cleveland Cavaliers to make it out of the hornets’ nest in our nation’s capital in one piece! Seriously!
Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points for the Cavaliers, who were down for most of the first three quarters before coming back to defeat the Wizards 134-124 on Friday night. Evan Mobley had 27 points while frontcourt mate Jarrett Allen produced a 12-point, 12-rebound double double as Cleveland has won six of seven after a season-long three-game losing streak.
Jordan Poole scored a career-high 45 points for the Wizards, who saw their season-high three-game winning streak snapped.
Despite owning the best record in the East, the Cavaliers did not stand pat at the trade deadline, acquiring De’Andre Hunter from the Hawks and sending rotation players Caris LeVert and Georges Niang away in the process. The break in continuity, only exacerbated by the absence of another wing, Sam Merrill, to personal reasons, helped to turn what looked to be an easy “W” into a dogfight. The Wizards led by three at halftime and were neck-and-neck with Cleveland throughout the frame, with a Donovan Mitchell jumper in the lane giving the Cavaliers the lead with three seconds left in the frame.
“(Tonight’s win) just goes to show how connected we are, how much they support each other,” said Coach Kenny Atkinson. “We went through some stuff and we’re all kind of tired, to be honest. And I told them in the locker room: ‘A lot of teams (would) lose this game.’ But that’s kind of who we are. We’ve got a heck of a team.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Friday evening’s game, with photos taken by DC-area photographer Terry Mayo Jr. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page, Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 21 pictures in total.
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