After another Herculean effort by Bradley Beal, who scored 41, his 24th 40-career career count, the Wizards (2–7) fell to the Boston Celtics (7–3) 116–107 in the final game of four trip game road. Boston came out strong – running to an 8-0 lead – after Beal made two turns, but the Wizards star made up for any mistakes by scoring eight of the team’s first 13 points and 14 of 28 at the end of the first quarter.
Also noteworthy for a first quarter that saw Washington lose 33-28 was the insertion of Isaac Bonga – who has not played since the game against Minnesota, although for five minutes – to help stabilize the defense. Despite being one of the most competent defenders in a team that fights at that end of the field, Bonga played only six minutes and finished with a rebound and an assist.
With the Wizards having trouble scoring in the paint, coach Scott Brooks opted for a rotation by Thomas Bryant (seven points, eight rebounds, two assists) and Mo Wagner, who, despite scoring just one point, operated like a spark plug from the bank. With Washington trailing Boston by up 21 points in the second quarter – mostly due to a bad kick and 11 hand turns – Beal did everything he could to put 18 points in the break.
A 10–2 run in Boston at the start of the third quarter put the Wizards in 76–49, forcing Brooks to take a break. After the game stopped, point guard Garrison Matthews made his first appearance for Washington this season – he finished with four points, two rebounds and a steal, pestering Marcus Smart (13, five and five) on the defensive side. A late Beal three saw visitors close the quarter with 96-81.
When the fourth started, Brooks kept his Beal-and-the-bench lineup from Wagner, Ish Smith (eight points, three steals), Davis Bertans (13 points out of 4-9 in three shots) and Matthews on the ground. After a 7–2 run to kick-start the fourth, the Wizards narrowed the gap to ten.
A few minutes later, Rui Hachimura (17, five and three) hit a three, which led the Wizards to four (99-95) and forced coach Brad Stevens to request a break. (All of this came while Beal was on the bench, resting). Even after Beal returned to the game, Washington simply ran out of gas at both ends of the field. And with Jayson Tatum (32) and Jaylen Brown (27) dominating, Washington dropped to 2-7 this season.
In the last two games, Beal had 101 points combined, but scored just seven in the fourth period (three on Wednesday and four tonight). And with the upcoming games against Miami, Phoenix and Utah, the road ahead is no longer easy.