A mistake from Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma was the beginning of the end for his team Monday against the Toronto Raptors.
The Wizards led by as many as 23 points against the Raptors at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada.
Kuzma was arguably the biggest reason behind Washington’s early big lead. He poured in 34 points on 14-of-25 shooting to lead the Wizards. But one incident involving Kuzma midway through the fourth quarter shifted momentum in the Raptors’ favor.
The Wizards led 107-97 with just over five minutes left in the game. A missed three-pointer from Raptors guard Dennis Schroder was deflected out of bounds. The referees ruled it Raptors ball.
Kuzma was certain that the referees got the call wrong. He ran all the way to the backcourt to ask Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. to challenge the call.
But the referees did not wait for Kuzma, which led to the Raptors playing 5-on-4 against the Wizards on the other end. Raptors forward Scottie Barnes got an easy layup as a result.
Barnes’ basket was the start of what turned into a 14-0 Raptors run. The Wizards went 0-for-7 from the field with four turnovers the rest of the way. The Raptors won 111-107 against the visitors.
Upon replay, Kuzma turned out to be right. The Raptors did touch the basketball last on the play that had him clamoring for a coach’s challenge. However, it did not minimize the fact that he left the rest of the team vulnerable to try and get Unseld to challenge the call.
The loss drops the Wizards to 2-8, tied for the second-worst record in the NBA. The Raptors get back to .500 with a 5-5 record.
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