Wall has season-high 40 points in Wizards’ win
James has season-lowest score of 13 points for Lakers in 128-110 loss
John Wall scored a season-high 40 points and had 14 assists as the Washington Wizards routed the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 128-110 yesterday morning (Singapore time), snapping a four-game losing streak.
Wall converted 16 of 27 field-goal attempts, including four of eight from three-point range.
Bradley Beal had 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Wizards, and Jeff Green and Sam Dekker scored 20 points each.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 25 off the bench for the Lakers, who had won three of four, and Kyle Kuzma added 20.
Just everybody out there playing with a lot of energy, probably because we were short-handed knowing we could get embarrassed playing LeBron...John Wall on how the Washington Wizards inspired themselves to beat the LA Lakers 128-110
LeBron James had 13 points, his fewest ever against Washington, on five-of-16 shooting in 32 minutes. It was James' season-lowest score.
"Just everybody out there playing with a lot of energy, probably because we were short-handed knowing we could get embarrassed playing LeBron, knowing there's going to be a lot of Lakers fans out there, so got up for the game," Wall said.
"We have to find a way to get up for those teams that are not the Lakers or the Warriors or those dominant teams in the East and the West.
"When we figure it out, then we'll be one of those teams that people start taking serious and be more consistent."
The Lakers had 22 turnovers.
The Wizards led by 20 at halftime and by as many as 27 in the third quarter.
The Lakers closed with 15 early in the fourth quarter, but Washington then scored nine straight points to make it 115-91 halfway through the period.
Wall's jumper gave the Wizards an early 6-4 lead and kicked off a 22-4 run that ended when Kuzma's lay-up made it 26-10 with 3:31 left in the quarter.
The Lakers continued to close the gap and trailed 33-23 after one quarter.
Lonzo Ball's three-pointer pulled the Lakers within 35-29 early in the second quarter.
Wall's 3-pointer stretched the Wizards' lead to 44-34 with 8:20 remaining in the quarter as Washington outscored the Lakers 30-17 to lead 71-51 at halftime.
The Wizards point guard had 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting and eight assists in the first half, while James had nine points on four-of-nine shooting.
Washington shot 54.4 per cent (31 for 57) before the break. - REUTERS
OTHER RESULTS: Brooklyn 144 Atlanta 127, Cleveland 105 Philadelphia 128, Indiana 110 New York 99, Dallas 113 Sacramento 120, New Orleans 96 Miami 102, Denver 95 Toronto 86
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