Knicks at Wizards
The New York Knicks had to overcome a sensational individual performance in their latest victory. New York will face more of a balanced lineup when it visits the Washington Wizards on Friday. The Knicks withstood a 54-point effort by Golden State's Stephen Curry on Wednesday night to win their second straight following a four-game losing streak. New York has dropped four of five on the road, including a 106-96 victory at Washington on Feb. 6 that ended a 10-game winning streak against the Wizards.
The Wizards have been on the upswing since a disastrous start to the season, but had their three-game winning streak halted in a 96-95 loss at Detroit on Wednesday night. It was Washington's fourth loss to the Pistons this season and left head coach Randy Wittman seething over his team's play. "We didn’t deserve to win that game," Wittman said. "We were more caught up in ourselves as individuals than the team. And that just tells me: ‘I’m worried about myself. I’m not worried about winning this game.'"
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), CSMA (Washington)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (34-20): New York center Tyson Chandler had a monster game on the backboards, pulling down a career-high 28 rebounds to go with 16 points in the win over Golden State. It was the fourth 20-rebound game of the month for Chandler, pushing his season average to 11.4 - his highest total since he hauled in 11.7 boards in 2007-08. Lost in the brilliance of Curry's performance Wednesday was a 26-point game by Knicks sixth man J.R. Smith, who hit the go-ahead jumper and connected on 6 of 11 3-point attempts.
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (18-38): Washington's season turned around when point guard John Wall returned to the lineup, but the former No. 1 overall pick is staggering through an ugly stretch. Wall had more turnovers (7) than points (6) against the Pistons - the fourth time in the last seven games he has committed at least seven turnovers. Wall, who said some of his teammates were responsible for the high number of miscues, is also mired in a shooting slump, connecting on only 30.8 percent over the past six games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Knicks F Carmelo Anthony is struggling from behind the arc, hitting 6 of 33 3-point attempts in the last five games.
2. Wizards C Nene missed Wednesday's game with a shoulder injury and his status is unclear for the Knicks game.
3. Prior to the loss at Washington on Feb. 6, the Knicks had won the three previous meetings by an average of 24.3 points.