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The Washington Wizards fought a lot in their 123-105 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night inside the Paycom Center.
Coming into the game as massive underdogs, the Wizards played like they had nothing to lose, and that worked for them for a decent amount of time.
Through three quarters, the Wizards hung in the game, which impressed head coach Brian Keefe.
“Give our guys a lot of credit tonight,” Keefe said postgame. “We played a good basketball game. Ball was movement great, we were sharing it. Our defense held them to 24 in that third quarter and they just made that little run right there. I thought we ran out of a little gas and during that stretch but our guys battled. Our guys put a terrific game, credit to them.”
Going up against the best team in the Western Conference as the worst team in the Eastern Conference is no small task, especially when several players were out for the Wizards. But the Wizards didn't play like that, they gave it their all even when the deck was stacked against them.
“Our effort was terrific," Keefe said. "I mean this is a good high-powered team with some really high-powered guys and I thought it was a multiple effort game from us defensively. [We] made these guys work first on the boards a little bit but like we gave full out commitment to the game plan. It was impressive.”
This kind of effort is what will keep the Wizards moving on the right path this season. It may not lead to a win against a top team like the Thunder, but Washington may be able to pull out victories against lesser teams with a performance like that.
The Wizards' next game comes Thursday against the Charlotte Hornets.
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