The Wizards fought all night but came apart in the final quarter
Fresh off a successful NBA trade deadline, the Washington Wizards returned to Capital One Arena to face the East-leading Cavaliers. Cleveland defeated Washington, 134-124.
The opening frame began similarly to the previous three games for the Wizards as they led early behind a quick nine points from Bilal Coulibaly. The second-year forward took Jarrett Allen into the paint before stopping on a dime, turning and drilling a 10-foot jumper to complete a 3-for-3 start to the contest. Cleveland led 35-33 after the first frame.
After a 0-5 shooting start, Jordan Poole found his rhythm en route to 19 first-half points on 9-18 from the field. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland paced the Cavs, but the Wizards’ frantic pace created difficulties for Cleveland on the defensive end. Washington entered halftime with a 67-64 advantage.
Jordan Poole continued his offensive barrage to keep the Wizards ahead for most of the third quarter. They took a narrow one-point deficit into the fourth frame as they looked to knock off the East-leading Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers were a perfect 36-0 entering Friday’s game when taking a lead into the fourth this season. That record remained perfect as they dominated the young Wizards 40-31 in the final frame to earn a 134-124 road victory.
The last-place Wizards held tough with the first-place Cavaliers. Poole dropped a career-high 45 points, and Richaun Holmes added 12 points and 12 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough as the Wizards fell to 9-42.