Kyrie Irving and John Wall were sensational in overtime. Boston started the period on a 7-1 run, but as had been the case most of the night, Washington responded. Kelly Oubre hit a triple to give the Wizards a 121-120 lead with 1:33 left. Irving hit two free throws as Boston regained the lead, but Markieff Morris scored for Washington. Down one and heavily guarded by Wall, Kyrie hit a very tough three pointer over John in front of the Boston bench. Wall responded with another foray to the rim with 30.7 seconds left, John hit the shot but Irving fell on his foot. Wall looked to be in serious pain, but he didn't head to the back. Just walked to the end of the bench and then came back into the game. Then Kyrie provided the dagger, from 31 feet out from atop the circle. He scored 12 of Boston's 17 points, literally accounting for their last 12 points of the contest. The Celtics beat the Wizards 130-125 last night at Capital One Arena. It would be Boston's seventh consecutive win and a very tough loss for Washington.
Irving led all scorers with 38 points, he also had seven assists. Marcus Morris had 27 points and nine rebounds, while Marcus Smart chipped in with 18 points and five rebounds. Not to mention the countless effort plays he made. Wall showed off his all around game with 34 points, 13 assists and six rebounds. Bradley Beal had 22 points, 14 of them coming in the first half. Jeff Green had a double-double, finishing with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Trailing by seven to start the fourth, Kelly Oubre sparked an 8-0 Washington run. Markieff Morris capped it off with a triple to give the Wizards an 85-84 lead. From that point on it was punch, counter punch all the way down to 13.9 seconds left. Morris was the constant for Boston, while Wall paced Washington with 12, most of which came down the stretch on drives to the rim. Irving found Tatum for a dunk after beating some quarter court pressure, which gave Boston a 113-110 lead. The Celtics chose to foul on the ensuing Wizards possession, sending Beal to the line. Brad made the first and missed the second, but he followed his shot and laid it in with 11.9 seconds left on the clock. Washington's Morris did a great job defending the rim on a drive from Irving. He did a great job of staying vertical and the miss sent the game into overtime.
The Wizards got off to a solid start defensively, harassing Boston ball handlers and shooters. The Celtics shot just 42% from the floor while the Wizards shot 60%. Neither team shot it well from beyond the arc, but ball movement was at a premium for the home side. On 12 made field goals, the Wizards had seven assists. Wall had five points and four assists while Green was very effective with six points and five rebounds. Marcus Morris is a big reason as to why Washington couldn't build a bigger lead with timely cuts and shot making, he led the Celtics with eight points.
The Celtics didn't waste anytime making up ground as the second period started, a second unit lineup anchored by Robert Williams and Semi Ojeleye sparked a Celtics run. Their versatility on the defensive end really changed things into their team's favor, Semi hit a few open shots as well. Including a three to give Boston a brief lead. During that Boston run, Tatum got the crowd off it's feet as he slid Satoransky before driving the lane for a big dunk. Morris (Washington) hit a much needed triple to not only regain the lead for his team, but settle them down as well.
The Wizards closed the half strong, Beal scored 10 in the quarter and their defense picked up. They also closed the gap on the boards a bit, Tomas Satoransky beat the buzzer with a nice tear drop to make it 55-46 Wizards at the half. The Wizards did a great job of taking care of the ball, turning it over just four times.
That changed in the second half as the Celtics turned up their defense and forced seven Washington turnovers. Irving had nine points, but it was Marcus Smart's imprint all over the quarter. He set the tone defensively as he took the challenge of limiting Beal's effectiveness. Brad had 14 at halftime, but only two during the third quarter. Smart also added eight points and Marcus Morris capped off the 38-22 surge with a fade-away over Satoransky as the buzzer sounded to give Boston a seven point lead. Of the seven turnovers by Washington, Wall and Beal were responsible for five of them.
