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Briefing: Young guns come up big against the Warriors

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Washington Wizards keep Warriors Don Nelson from career wins record - Michael Lee, Washington Post

Andray Blatche added 21 points as the Wizards (24-53) had four players score at least 20 points for the first time since Dec. 26, 2007. They won consecutive games for the first time since the first two games after the all-star break and have also won three of their past four. "It feels good, I ain't going to lie," Blatche said. "We're playing with energy, effort. We all playing with a meaning now."  

Record on hold: Nelson, Warriors fall to Wizards - Joseph White, Associated Press

The Wizards have been just as bad as the Warriors — the teams entered the game with identical 23-53 records — but on this night they could do virtually whatever they wanted against an undersized team. Nick Young scored a season-high 29 points, JaVale McGee set career highs with 25 points and 15 rebounds, Shaun Livingston matched a career-high with 21 points on 9-for-11 shooting, and Andray Blatche added 21 points, giving the Wizards four 20-point scorers for the first time since December 2007. 

Wizards 112, Warriors 94 - Craig Stouffer, Pick & Roll

Wizards head coach Flip Saunders credited Livingston for getting the team going: Livingston called the Warriors a "6-8 and under team." "Probably the only reason right now he’s not an all-star in this league is because of the injury," said Saunders. "So when we brought him in, we knew that he had the mental capacity to play that position. We knew that one time he had the physical skills and even though he might not be as physically explosive as he used to be, he seems to be getting better and better with that, and he’s got unbelievable size so you can do a lot with him, put a lot of pressure on the guys that are guarding him. He’s progressed, and he’s getting more confidence. He knows that we have a lot of confidence in him so it’s nice to see him continue to produce."  

Warriors again provide special nights for Wizards - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Young couldn't resist taking it to the rim against the undersized Warriors, as he pump faked and drove for an easy dunk in the first quarter. Then, in the second quarter, the Warriors essentially rolled out a red carpet for him to drive baseline for an uncontested two-handed dunk. Afterward, Young hung on the rim and looked around, almost stunned that no one even attempted to stop him. Saunders, though, said he was more impressed with Young did on the other end of the floor. "He's played pretty good position defense, so he's doing some of the little things; when you do those little things, you get minutes. He's been better defensively and because of that he's been gaining confidence and he knows we have confidence in him - when he plays like that he can be extremely productive."

Instant Analysis: Warriors-Wizards - Brian Jackson, Fast Break

By far the player of the game had to be JaVale McGee. Lately Flip has brought him off the bench to provide a spark of energy and tonight McGee responded with career highs in points (25) and rebounds (15). The Wizards were able to take advantage of Golden State's lack of height. McGee single handedly outrebounded the Warriors on the offensive glass (9-to-8). What Flip will be even happier with is McGee's shot selection. The majority of his shots came from 10-feet and under.

Wizards Rout Warriors, Win Again - Dave Johnson, CSN Washington

"I feel comfortable coming off of the bench," McGee noted. "My rebounding and offense just came to me.  We all were trying to work as hard as we could and everyone was rebounding and running the floor.  We came out strong and we tried to keep it that way throughout the entire game."