When the NBA schedule was released before the start of the season, I doubt many people circled the four games pitting Washington against Milwaukee. Too bad, because they are missing one of the NBA’s best budding rivalries. These two teams, each led by a former second round pick turned All Star, have played some incredibly exciting games in the last two years. Last night’s 108-105 Wizards win was more of the same. Gilbert Arenas, the NBA’s player of the month for December, provided the last of the game’s 25 lead changes in spectacular fashion, collecting a Bucks miss with just over 6 seconds left in the game and almost lazily making his way up the court. Everyone around me was screaming “Go! Go! Go!”, but Agent (Six) Zero took his time and launched a 35-footer that hit nothing but the bottom of the net just as the buzzer expired. The reaction from the 14,632 at the Verizon Center was deafening.
“If you watched the Phoenix and Chicago game, you see what happens when you leave time on the clock,” Arenas told reporters after the game. “I don’t know why this is a surprise to you guys now,” Arenas continued. “I’m 8-8 for the year.” Agent Hibachi says he’s perfect from beyond 35 feet this year, a stat he, not the team, tracks. After he’d been answering questions about the game winner for over five minutes, it occurred to me that no one was asking the question that was begging to be asked. So it was up to me. “So do you consider that a quality shot?” I asked. “Yep, quality shot. If you practice it, it’s a quality shot.” Asked if he said anything to the Bucks after the game winner, Arenas replied “I didn’t have to, my swag was phenomenal!” Head over the The Bog for the video evidence. That’s me at the 3:09 mark.
All braggadocio aside, it was some timely defense in the fourth quarter that keyed this win for the Wiz. After letting the Bucks’ backcourt into the lane for most of the game, Washington put the clamps on in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Bucks by seven in the period. We’ll overlook that offensive rebound that Andrew Bogut corralled with 29 seconds left.
Agent Zero came close to a triple double with 32 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Washington is 15-1 this season when Gilbert scores over 30. Caron Butler, who shot 9-9 in the first half, wasn’t far behind with 29 points, seven boards and nine dimes. Second-year man Andray Blatche got some PT deep into the fourth quarter and did a nice job doing the little things, collecting a few rebounds, a put back dunk and two blocks. Michael Redd led the visitors with 27 points but shot just 9-23 from the field.
The win starts the team off on the right foot in the new year and keeps the Wizards in first place in the Southeast Division with an 18-13 overall record. Their 12 wins in December makes that 6-10 start to the season seem like a distant memory now. They’ll try for their 13th home win on Friday, when they host the Los Angeles Clippers.
Photo by Kyle Gustafson.
