Wizards at Mavericks
THE STORY: The defending champion Dallas Mavericks have
dropped three straight and eight of their last 10 and are in danger of
dropping out of the top eight in the Western Conference. After playing a
stretch of nine games in 12 days, the Mavericks have had two straight
days off to rest. Now, Dallas get a home date Tuesday with the lowly
Washington Wizards to right the ship. The Wizards were crushed by the
San Antonio Spurs on Monday and have not won on the road since Feb. 14.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CS Washington (Wizards), FS Southwest (Mavericks)
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (9-31):
Defense continues to be the Achilles heel for Washington, which has
allowed 11 of its last 12 opponents to score more than 100 points. The
Wizards put together a pair of impressive wins on their last homestand,
including a comeback victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, but could not
get a stop at San Antonio on Monday. Washington allowed the Spurs to
shoot 54 percent in the 112-97 setback. The Wizards are getting
inconsistent production from point guard John Wall and center JaVale
McGee and are trying to fit players such as Andray Blatche, Nick Young,
Chris Singleton and Jan Vesely into the lineup to evaluate the talent.
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (23-20):
While the Wizards are one of the youngest teams in the league, Dallas
is one of the oldest. That age showed in the recent brutal stretch, with
the defense slipping as the team tired. The Mavericks, who rank in the
top 10 in the league in scoring defense, have yielded 105.7 points in
the last three games and at least 93 in each of their last eight
setbacks. Dallas is expecting to get some reinforcements in the form of
Brendan Haywood (ankle) and Brandan Wright (concussion), who have been
practicing and are scheduled to return Tuesday.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The Mavericks have taken five of the last six meetings.
2. Dallas point guard Jason Kidd sat out Saturday’s game at Golden State to rest.
3. Washington is 3-15 on the road.