Washington, D.C. – In a decisive 102-86 victory last night, the Washington Wizards proved to be too much for the Chicago Bulls, bringing the home team to a 25-11 record on the season and continuing a run that shows why they are one of the best teams in the NBA.
Much attention was brought to the ‘Battle of the Point Guards’ between Washington’s John Wall and Chicago’s Derrick Rose to see who would take the upper hand and the former did so in commanding fashion. While Rose may have outscored Wall, 19 points to 16, the most telling number was Wall’s 12 assists to Rose’s two. There is just no question that the former Kentucky Wildcat steps on the court and makes those around him better.
With his often-superior quickness, true vision and spatial understanding; Wall effortlessly distributes the ball to his teammates, consistently putting them in position to make plays. This happens enough that it often draws the ire and frustration of opposing players, much as it did last night when he drew a hard foul from Bulls’ guard Aaron Brooks, who recklessly lunged toward Wall and blindsided him to the ground.
This game proved to be a great personal victory for Wall against another one of the league’s best point guards with Wall finally getting the edge over Rose in their six meetings.
While the Wizards continued to show great chemistry, speed and intensity, no one arguably did so more last night than Marcin Gortat. From the moment the buzzer went off, the center was unrelenting in his effort. Often running down court to make the offensive play, sprinting back and hitting the board hard for the next defensive rebound, he created a lot of problems for the Bulls who seemed to really struggle defending him. He ended the game with 21 points and 13 rebounds.
The Wizards continue to show how talented they are. But they will need to put all of the working parts together tomorrow as they face one of their biggest challenges in Atlanta against the Hawks. This next opponent is currently three games ahead of Washington for the top spot in the Southeast Division.