East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbooks) - Caron Butler scored 22 points and dished out 10 assists, leading the
Washington Wizards to a 108-88 victory over the
New Jersey Nets at Izod Center.
Antawn Jamison added 22 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who came into the game having lost seven of eight. DeShawn Stevenson tallied 21 points thanks to 5-of-8 shooting from long range in the victory. Washington had come into the game 0-11 in the Eastern Conference and 0-6 on the road.
Devin Harris scored 18 points for the Nets a game after torching the Suns for 47 points. Vince Carter added 16 points on 6-of-17 shooting for New Jersey, which snapped a three-game winning streak. Keyon Dooling had 14 points in the loss, while Brook Lopez had 10 points and nine rebounds.
Tied at seven early, the Wizards went on a 7-0 run, as Stevenson's three gave the visitors an early 14-7 advantage. The Nets fought back toward the end of the frame, and the hosts faced an early one-point deficit after the opening quarter.
The teams went back-and-forth in the second quarter, and Washington maintained its one-point edge, 51-50, going into halftime.
The Wizards began the third quarter on a 14-3 spurt, increasing their lead to 12. Back-to-back three-pointers from Dee Brown gave Washington an 18-point edge, and the team held a comfortable 86-62 lead headed into the fourth.
Washington pushed its lead to as high as 27 in the fourth before cruising to the win.
Game Notes
Washington snapped a six-game losing streak at New Jersey and had lost 14 of its previous 15 contests in the Meadowlands...The Nets had beaten the Wizards in 10 of the previous 12 contests...The season series is tied, 1-1... Washington was impressive from beyond the arc, shooting 13-for-24, while the Nets shot just 7-of-20 in long distance shots...Overall, the Wizards shot 51.8 percent (44-for-85) from the floor, and New Jersey shot 40.3 percent (31- for-77).
