source: Agence France-Presse
CLEVELAND, Ohio (AFP) – The Washington Wizards, led by 31 points from Nick Young, have finally won their first NBA road game of the season after 25 losses in a row, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-100.
On the same court where the Cavaliers snapped their NBA all-time record losing streak of 26 games two days earlier by defeating the Los Angeles Clippers, the Wizards halted their futility streak short of historic levels.CLEVELAND, Ohio (AFP) – The Washington Wizards, led by 31 points from Nick Young, have finally won their first NBA road game of the season after 25 losses in a row, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-100.
"It feels like we got a whole mountain off our back," said Wizards forward Andray Blatche.
Washington's 0-25 road start marked the third-worst in NBA history, trailing only the record 0-29 run by Dallas in the 1992-93 season and the 0-28 start of the 1974-75 first-year expansion New Orleans Jazz.
"I'm just happy we got this road win out of the way," said Young, who made 14-of-21 shots from the field. "If we keep doing this, we can get on a nice winning streak."
The Wizards had not won a road game since April 9, 2010, at Boston, and they had lost seven games in a row in Cleveland over multiple seasons. Washington, which lost nine of the past 10 games overall, improved to 15-38 this season.
After the final buzzer sounded, the team shared smiles, applause and high fives. Blatche and Kirk Hinrich each had 17 points for Washington while rookie John Wall added 19 points and 14 rebounds and Josh Howard added 16 points.
"I feel like it's Christmas," Wall said. "Now that we've gotten one road win we can get a few more. We're a great team. We've still got a lot to learn."
NBA doormat Cleveland slid to 9-46. The Cavaliers must win one of their last 27 games to avoid matching the worst season in NBA history, the 9-73 mark of the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers, and breaking their own losing streak record.
Washington shot 61 percent from the field in the first quarter, when Young scored 16 points to spark the Wizards to a 35-23 lead.
"We were playing great, executing right and setting the tone from the first quarter," Young said.
The visitors stretched the margin as large as 25 points on the way to their biggest half-time lead of the season at 68-46. It was the most points the Wizards had produced in any first half this season.
A 9-0 Cleveland run to close the third quarter pulled the Cavaliers within 95-79 and the Cavaliers began the fourth quarter with a 12-6 spurt to trim the Washington edge to 101-91 with 7:20 remaining.
The Cavaliers, who had not won before last Friday since December 18 at New York, could not win back-to-back games for the first time since November 9, however, as the Wizards answered the threat.
China's Yi Jianlian hit a jumper with 3:40 remaining to put the Wizards ahead 111-95 and Cleveland, which never led, could not make a final challenge.
Antawn Jamison, in his first game against Washington since being traded from the Wizards to Cleveland last season, led the Cavaliers with 21 points.
Complete NBA Results
Boston Celtics def. Miami Heat, 85-82
Orlando Magic def. LA Lakers, 89-75
Washington Wizards def. Cleveland Cavaliers, 115-100
Portland Trailblazers def. Detroit Pistons, 105-100
Toronto Raptors def. LA Clippers, 98-93
Memphis Grizzlies def. Denver Nuggets, 116-108
Oaklahoma Thunder def. Golden State Warriors, 100-94
Sacramento Kings def. Phoenix Suns, 113-108
