Timberwolves at Wizards
It has been over 35 years since Washington has been 12 games over .500, but the franchise has a good chance to reach that mark when it wraps up a three-game homestand against lowly Minnesota on Tuesday. The Wizards' surge toward the top of the Eastern Conference continued with a 93-84 triumph over Utah on Sunday, their fourth straight win and eighth in nine games overall. Included in the run is a seven-game winning streak at home and five straight victories against Western Conference opponents.
Bradley Beal scored 22 points and the East's top-rated defense held the Jazz to a 38.5 percent mark in Sunday's win for Washington. At the same time, Minnesota was dropping a 100-94 decision to the Los Angeles Lakers in the finale of a home-heavy portion of the schedule. Shabazz Muhammad tied his career high with 28 points in just 27 minutes of action for the Timberwolves, who have lost eight of their last nine and play six of their next seven games on the road to finish out the year.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN North Plus (Minnesota), CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington)
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (5-18): Muhammad has scored in double figures six straight times - including three efforts with at least 20 points - while playing fewer than 30 minutes in each contest. The hot stretch has the second-year pro in elite company when it comes to productivity; he scores 31 percent of his team's points when on the floor, a ratio that ranked seventh in the league entering Monday behind such superstars as Kobe Bryant, James Harden, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony. Muhammad is averaging 12.9 points on 58.1 percent shooting in only 17 minutes on the road.
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (17-6): Washington had a sloppy beginning in falling behind by five points at halftime against Utah, but bounced back to dominate after the break, an indication of its continued maturity. "We all grew individually and collectively,” Beal told the Washington Post of the team's improvement from last season. “We’re not complaining as much as we were last year." The Wizards are 8-2 since Beal entered the starting lineup as the third-year sharpshooter has made 27-of-56 3-pointers, helping his team lead the league in long-range shooting (38.9 percent).
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Timberwolves PG Mo Williams (back) has missed six straight games but has been taking part in practice.
2. The Wizards entered Monday tied for third in the NBA in field-goal percentage defense (42.8) while the Timberwolves were last (49.3).
3. The last time Washington was 12 games over .500 was at the end of the 1978-79 season, when the then-Bullets finished 54-28.