Wizards 116

Boston 89

May 4, 2017, Verizon Center, Washington, D.C.

No team in the NBA has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit. The Washington Wizards will
not try to be the first to break the streak as they took care of business in impressive fashion
against the Boston Celtics to defend home court. The Wizards won 116-89 and look to even the
series on Sunday at 2.

FIGHT!

It started early with Ian Mahinmi and Jonas Jerebko coming forehead to forehead, Nene and
Jimmy Butler circa 2014-esque, and it ended with Brandon Jennings and Terry Rozier both being
ejected after a second set of double technicals.

In the middle, a charge from Kelly Oubre Jr. on Kelly Olynyk through head official Monty
McCutchen resulted in a full layout of Olynyk, as part of a mild flop. Oubre was appropriately
ejected with a flagrant two foul and will be fined heftily, although Bradley Beal said he might
bite the bullet for his teammate. Oubre may be suspended for Game 4 of the series.

"I think we've got to control our emotions, Scott Brooks said. We can't respond that way, but
when you get hit in the head a few times We're very competitive guys out there, both teams are
very competitive. When you keep getting hit in the head you might respond that way, and I think
that's what he did. I'm not saying that was the right thing to do. We have to focus on playing
basketball, we can't control what they're doing. We just have to control within our game-plan and
stay focused. I haven't talked to him and I definitely will talk to him. We have to keep our
control, and you have to let the referees call those calls and at that particular time, they did call
the right call.

We have to do a better job, hes important to our team, hes an X-Factor, Wall said about
Oubres reaction and meaning to the team. We told him, we understand he gets frustrated.
Theres plenty of times throughout the game that I want to do stuff, but I know how much I mean
to the team. I think its just a learning experience for him.

I was encouraging him because in a situation like that, you just gotta be smart, Beal said. You
got the call, as much as it may frustrate you, you know, you just gotta continue to do what you
are doing. At that point, thats what they wanted it to be. They wanted it to be physical, get out it
out of hand a little bit. We were up 20, whatever it was, and so they were kinda playing angry.
They were fouling, setting moving screens, thats going to happen throughout the course of a
game and I told him, We need you. You are one of our best defenders. You are constantly getting
better. You are a threat out here on the floor and we need you, so just make sure, moving forward
that you are smart about it. If somebody hit you, move on, you know what Im saying, and just
continue to play smart.
I dont know because I thought they were cool, Beal continued. Thats what kinda threw me
off, so it really takes K.O (Kelly Oubre Jr.) a lot. I always see him shake hands. Like in the
regular season they would shake hands before the game and talk a little bit. It kinda through me
off, but its the playoffs, so I do understand KO whole heartedly and I support him.

I dont know what he [Oubre] was doing, Isaiah Thomas said. The screens weve been
setting, for the most part I feel like theyve been legal. Its just those guys fall and refs call an
offensive foul. I dont know why he reacted like that, especially to Kelly [Olynyk], hes just not
like that. We dont like them and they dont like us.

Another quick start and, more importantly, holding onto it.

Washington got off to another fast start and Celtics head coach Brad Stevens foreshadowed
yesterday that Boston would be unable to comeback on the road. It was not a 17-0 start, but
actually Game 3 was tied at 12 midway through the first quarter. The bright side was Bradley
Beal scoring the Wizards first seven points.

It was important, Beal said. I just wanted to get off to a good start, a good rhythm. John
(Wall) and I talked a lot, a little bit and that was something that we wanted to get going early. I
gotta make sure I have some clean ones, some open ones and just be aggressive. I just came up
and made the first seven points. I feel like I aint made mmm since. It was good, it was a good
start.

Over the next five minutes, the Wizards went on a whopping 22-0 run. The difference between
the first two games? Playing together according to Marcin Gortat, which allowed Washington to
earn a 30 point advantage in the second half. Markieff Morris alluded to the say idea as Stevens
did yesterday at practice, we got the whole crowd behind [us]. They don't have no crowd to get
momentum, we got all the momentum. I feel like we had the momentum the whole game from
jump ball.

Weve been in that situation the first two games being up, Otto Porter said, but being home
we had the crowd on our side. We were just locked in. We knew they were going to try and make
a couple of runs. We decided to stick with our game plan and go from there and play hard.

I hope were not going to jinx it and say that today we played together the first half and the
second half, Marcin Gortat said. The game before we showed up in the first half, and the
second half we didnt have the same [energy] we had the first two games. We just played
together. We played and we executed the game plan and we played hard [and] we didnt stop.
Like Otto [Porter] said, weve been in this situation. We had the lead almost 20 points in the first
quarter and we lost the lead, and then we lost the game. We understood what we had to do and
we were locked in. As Otto said, we were playing in front of our own crowd, which was
definitely helpful.

Washington has lost just five games at home in nearly five months, dating back to December 7th,
so there is reason to think this series is over despite falling 2-0 to start.

Otto Porter making a late push for a max contract?

Pre All-Star Break, Porter was shooting a blazing 46.6 percent from beyond the arc, but just a
mediocre 34.1 percent to end the regular season, which quieted talks of the former Georgetown
star receiving a lucrative max contract this summer. In front of his former college head coach,
John Thompson III, Porter began the game 7 of 7 from the field and took advantage of the
Celtics trying to hide Isaiah Thomas lack of defensive skills on him. Porter worked the smaller
point guard with post moves.

Definitely, Porter classically said about if he had worked on his post up game, something he is
not typically known for. We watched a lot of film and just tried to figure out how we can make
adjustments especially with Isaiah guarding me, or whoever is guarding me trying to attack that
side. If they double-team me then I need to look for a shooter. It was just a good adjustment that
we made.

But I think that it was great OP [Otto Porter Jr.] was being aggressive [and] got into the
paint, Wall said. I think thats what you have to do. I think the first two games we kind of let
Isaiah [Thomas] off the hook and just let him rest on the other end. Otto did a great job.

They are trying to hide him a little bit We wanted to expose that, Beal said about Thomas
defense. Otto (Porter) gave him some trouble in the post, John (Wall) did, too. We were able to
move the ball out of it and thats a good look for us. Of course, we are going to continue to stick
with it if they are going to continue to hide him.

The return of Ian Mahinmi

Washingtons biggest new offseason signing over last summer has missed all of his games since
April 10 due to a left calf strain. After getting in some good work yesterday and today, Scott
Brooks announced pregame that he would be a game-time decision. Mahinmi finished with 2
points in 9:38 to go along with a rebound and assist, but his presence was surely felt on the
defensive end as he protected the rim with two blocks. Even though he was on minutes
restriction, it was certainly a step in the right direction.

Hes wanted to do this for the last couple of games, Brooks said. And we were just, no, no
no, no, but Im glad he came back. Im glad we waited. Hopefully he feels better tomorrow and
comes back Sunday.

Washington winning in the paint and on defense instead of the three-point line

Take away a couple of garbage time three-pointers from Sheldon Mac and the Wizards only shot
1 of 11 from beyond the arc in the second half. Take away Bojan Bogdanovic, who had a great
game at 4 of 7 shooting from his specialty range, and Washington only shot 2 of 16 from deep.
The home team was able to score 56 points in the paint and have averaged 51.3 points near the
rim in the three games of this series.

That and playing better defense as the Wizards held their opponent under 100 points for the first
time this postseason. Thomas was held to 13 points on 8 shot attempts, which is 9 times out of 10
going to end in a Wizards victory.
We made them miss shots, Brooks simply put it. We were contesting the three-point line, and
we were doing a good job of staying in front of the basketball. I thought our weak-side was
locked in. Against this team, if you relax for four or five seconds in any given shot clock, you're
going to give up an open shot. I thought our guys were locked in for the entire shot clock until
they took the shot, and they were rebounding the ball much better.

I think we just did a great job of just trying to deny him as much as possible [and] keep two
guys on him, Wall said. I dont think he was as aggressive as he was the past two games
usually when the game gets close in the fourth quarter he gets real aggressive. The game was
kind of out of reach then and they had reserves in and he didnt have an opportunity to have a big
scoring night.

We were in[to it], Porter said about the teams weak-side defense. We watched film. They
werent really making that extra-long pass to the corner. We were just in early and made sure that
we secure the ball when they do shoot it. On the back side we just have to get our rotations
down. We definitely emphasized that today.

We had a bad situation last game where they would just come in the paint and finish up, Gortat
added about weak-side defense. We have to go by the percentages we cant let them score
inside on the pocket passes, or the rolls, or let Isaiah Thomas or someone else drive to the paint
and score. We had to sit in the paint and make them kick the ball to the three-point line and make
them shoot the ball. Percentage-wise, thats what we have to give to them. Today, I thought they
didnt shoot the ball the way they shot the ball in the first two games. It was a good decision.

I dont think it was as much about Isaiah as it was the whole team, Brad Stevens said. They
were really into the passing lanes, they were really into the ball [and] they were really
aggressive. [They] obviously set the tone for how the game was going to be played [and]
dominated the game. They played great.

They had three guys on me so I couldn't really do anything, Thomas said. I'll make the
adjustments, it's fine. They were very aggressive on pick-and-rolls and me coming on down
screens and things like that. And we didn't adjust in the game. I don't think we did a good job of
screening and getting not just myself open but anybody else open on our team on the offensive
end. So we have to do a way better job on that. But, other than that, they did what they were
supposed to do. They hit first, they set the tone and then the rest kind of controlled the game after
that.

Isaiah Thomas went on a mini rant on the referees post game. Avery Bradley is a first team all
defender. He doesnt get the respect he should get on that end of the floor. We are playing just as
physical as them, but we are the ones getting all the fouls called on us [Boston has only been
called for three more fouls, 72-69, through three games]. They foul every now and then as
well as we do, so we feel like it should be a little more even.