The Washington Wizards (12-19) came into State Farm Arena on Tuesday riding high after an impressive big win over the Los Angeles Lakers two days earlier, but the Atlanta Hawks (7-23) quickly squashed that.
The Hawks gave the Wizards a taste of their own medicine from Sunday: As the Wizards did on to the Lakers in Washington, the Hawks came out to a big lead in the first few minutes. Washington missed its first 7 field-goal attempts and didn’t score until 7:26 left in the first quarter and already down 12-0. Although the Wizards were able to catch up at various points and make it competitive, including tying the game going into the fourth quarter, the initial deficit always felt too big to ultimately overcome.