Hawks at Wizards
Paul Pierce just won’t let Washington lose, and the Wizards are in
position to take a 3-1 lead when they host the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks
in Monday’s Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Pierce banked
in a jumper at the buzzer to give Washington a 103-101 victory on
Saturday and the fifth-seeded Wizards now have a chance to take a
commanding lead.
Pierce’s heroics were timely as Washington knows it won’t have John Wall (broken left hand and wrist) for the remainder of the series. But the mantra for the squad has been that it will be able to overcome the loss of the standpoint point guard. “We don’t have a choice,” shooting guard Bradley Beal told reporters. “We can sit here and make excuses or we can go out and prove people wrong.” Atlanta power forward Paul Millsap struggled in Game 3 with just eight points and two rebounds while plagued with flu-like symptoms and is just 14-of-39 shooting in the series.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, TNT
ABOUT THE HAWKS: Small forward DeMarre Carroll has been Atlanta’s top player in the series and is also considered one of its top defensive players, so his absence was conspicuous on Pierce’s game-winning shot. Immediately after the contest, Carroll said he wasn’t physically able to play at the time and then backtracked on those comments the next day, while coach Mike Budenholzer was insisting he went with the best group to get a stop. “I know a lot of people are going to say a lot of things because I’m supposed to be the top defender on the team, but I guess y’all can talk to Coach and he can answer the rest of the questions,” Carroll told reporters.
ABOUT THE WIZARDS: Washington led by 21 points with under 10 minutes to play in Game 3 before seeing the lead evaporate and then needing Pierce to hit one of his customary clutch shots. “Took my time. You know, wanted to make sure I got the shot off with no time on the clock,” Pierce told reporters. “I’ve been in those situations many times.” The Wizards are hoping power forward Nene will continue to play like he did in Game 3 – 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting – as opposed to the poor showings in the first two games when he missed all nine of his field-goal attempts.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Atlanta PG Jeff Teague is 12-of-41 shooting in the series while averaging 12.7 points and 7.3 assists.
2. Wizards SF Otto Porter Jr. is averaging 14 points and 9.3 rebounds in the series.
3. Hawks SG Kyle Korver had just six points in Game 3 and is 9-of-26 from 3-point range in the series.