Wizards at Hawks
The Washington Wizards are quietly making a steady climb up the standings in the Eastern Conference and are winners of nine of their last 11 games. The Wizards will try to pull one game closer to the No. 4 spot in the East when they visit the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.
Washington beat one team ahead of it in the standings when it earned a 123-108 home win over the third-place Boston Celtics on Tuesday and is winning with an improved defense that held star guard Isaiah Thomas to 1-of-7 from the floor in the fourth quarter. “It’s a simple philosophy: If you contest a shot he has less of a chance of making it," Wizards coach Scott Brooks told reporters. "We talk of that philosophy many times. It’s the moment of truth on every possession. Either you’re going to contest the shot or not. We are doing a much better job of doing that." The Hawks lead the Southeast Division and hold the No. 4 spot in the East, 1 1/2 games ahead of the Wizards, and are turning up their own defense during a stretch of 12 wins in the last 15 games. Atlanta is limiting opponents to an average of 100.9 points in those 15 games but needed an offensive push in the fourth quarter on Wednesday to emerge with a 119-114 triumph at Chicago.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington), FSN Southeast (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (25-20): Washington wore all black to the game before taking on Boston on Tuesday, a show of team camaraderie fueled by a contentious loss to the Celtics on Jan. 11, but also an example of the type of focus the team is finding as it learns to win consistently. "That is a playoff-type atmosphere," shooting guard Bradley Beal told reporters. "That is a team that is going to be in the playoffs and who is going to be a tough team to beat down the line, so we just came in and made sure we were locked in and ready to go from the get go." Beal went 12-of-18 from the field en route to 31 points in the win to pull out of a shooting funk that saw him shoot under 40 percent from the floor in four straight games.
ABOUT THE HAWKS (27-19): Atlanta looked like a team on the verge of breaking down its roster and beginning a rebuilding process a few weeks ago, but now seems like a team that can compete with the likes of Cleveland for the East title. The Hawks have not dropped back-to-back games since a seven-game slide bridging November and December, and used a 19-4 run closing the game on Wednesday to avoid a second consecutive setback this week. “We weren’t mentally sharp in the first half," Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters. "A lot of mental mistakes. Including into the second half. The guys just kept fighting. We talk about playing 48 minutes a lot. That last three minutes was unique. To go on a run like that, it takes you being great on both ends."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Hawks PG Dennis Schroder scored over 20 points in four of the last six games.
2. Wizards C Marcin Gortat is 11-of-13 from the floor in the last two games.
3. The teams split the first two meetings this season, with Washington earning a 95-92 home win in the most recent matchup on Nov. 4.