An all-around team effort propelled Washington past Indiana.
The Washington Wizards defended home court against an upstart Indiana Pacers squad Friday night, 137-123. With the win, the Wizards snapped a six-game losing streak to improve to 4-20, while the playoff-hopeful Pacers dropped to 13-10.
The “No Defense Bowl” was predictably an offensive explosion — Indiana and Washington play with the two highest paces in the NBA, and they’re both bottom three defenses, so the two teams had already put up 195 combined points by the end of the third quarter. Not a lick of defense was played — it was all blocks, blow-bys and fouls.
The first half was one of the Wizards’ best halves of the seasons. Bilal Coulibaly shone, dropping 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the field and 2-for-3 shooting from deep; two of Coulibaly’s points came thundering over the head of Indiana’s Aaron Nesmith.
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— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) December 16, 2023
Jordan Poole played an excellent first half, scoring 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting and dishing out four assists. Tyus Jones also delivered the Wizards’ best defensive highlight of the season so far, viciously blocking Haliburton from behind on a three-point attempt.
Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton appeared to loom, as he had just eight points on uncharacteristically bad shooting splits at halftime. The Wizards ultimately dodged a Haliburton heater, as he finished with just 19 points and 11 assists, a tame stat line for the NBA’s next Point God.
Washington held a 69-55 lead at the half and took care of business the rest of the way. Wizards fans finally had a chance to dip their toes in the Poole Party, as Jordan Poole matched his season-high of 30 points with 2:17 left in the third quarter. He failed to score the rest of the way, but it did not matter as the Wizards continued to extend their lead.
Coulibaly had one of his best games as a pro thus far, notching 17 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 2-for-3 from deep. Kyle Kuzma and Corey Kispert also added 31 and 23 points, respectively.
The Wizards will now hop on a plane to Phoenix to play the Suns and enjoy some warm weather for the weekend.