It’s finally time to come home. Without John Wall (knee) and on Day 12 away from Washington the Wizards closed out their longest road trip of the season Friday night with a commanding 129-104 victory over the Hawks in Atlanta. Washington got it done on both ends of the floor with consistent intensity from the jump Friday, hoping to spark momentum for a tough home stretch ahead.
Markieff Morris’ 23 points led an extremely well-balanced and potent D.C. offense to 57 percent shooting from the field and 56 percent from 3-point range on 18 makes from deep. That number from long range tied a season and franchise record for 3-pointers in a game. Mike Scott was next in line in the scoring barrage with 19 points off the bench, while newly-minted All-Star Bradley Beal and Otto Porter Jr. both tallied 18 on the night.
Beal and Morris got the Wizards off to the positive start they needed with 10 apiece in the opening quarter, leading the charge to a lead that ballooned to as many as 19 points in the first half. Washington’s defense turned it up all night to close the trip strong, holding the Hawks to just 42 percent shooting from the field and 27 percent from 3-point range.
The Wizards’ decisive stretch came early in the third quarter when they went on a 23-10 run to go up 25 with 4 minutes and change remaining in the frame. Beal and Porter scored eight points apiece in the third to lead Washington to a comfortable lead. Atlanta shaved the Wizards’ lead to 14 points with five minutes remaining, but couldn’t inch any closer before Washington cruised to victory.
In Wall’s absence, an inevitable focus was put on backup point guards Tomas Satoransky (Friday’s starter in the 5-time All-Star’s place) and Tim Frazier, and neither skipped a beat as the facilitators on the floor. Frazier racked up 14 assists on the night, while Satoransky did a little bit of everything with 11 points, seven assists and three rebounds. Per Elias Sports Bureau (via NBC Sports Washington’s David Devall), Frazier became the first player in NBA history to record 14 assists and three blocks off the bench. On the night, the Wizards assisted on a remarkable 40 of 49 made field goals, a new season-high.
Friday marked the end of a five-game road trip in which the Wizards finished 2-3. With the win in Atlanta, they still remain without a losing streak longer than two games on the season. Next, they’ll have two days off before hosting the Thunder on Tuesday night at Capital One Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
Odds and Ends
- Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 15 points off the bench to help lead the second unit on the night, including a pair of thunderous slams.
- In addition to the Wizards’ hot shooting night from the field, they also connected on 13 of 14 from the line. Their 92.9 mark from the line came just shy of a season high.
- Washington edged Atlanta in paint scoring (38-36) and rebounds (39-32) on the night and claimed a 15-2 advantage on the fast break.