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Yesterday, it was all about Nene and his last-second, game-winning dunk against the Pelicans. Today, it's again all about Nene, but this time we're all praying instead of praising.
The Big Brazilian went down midway through the third quarter against the Cavaliers with an apparent knee injury. He was immediately ruled out of the game with a knee sprain as the preliminary diagnosis. Nene was set to have an MRI this morning, so get your prayers in quick if you haven't already. Things certainly don't sound good as of now.
The good news was the Wiz, who looked dreadful earlier in the year when Nene was out with injury, hung on and eventually pulled away to beat the Cavs rather comfortably, 96-83. And, as is often the case with this team's winning efforts, they did it with defense.
Cleveland scored only 11 points in the fourth quarter, during which Kyrie Irving was held without a field goal, his only points coming on two free throws. John Wall led the team on both ends of the floor, scoring a game-high 21 points to go with nine assists and only one turnover, while holding Irving to a 6-for-17 shooting night. Marcin Gortat turned in another double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds, Bradley Beal found a way to score 17 points despite missing his lone three-point attempt, and Trevor Ariza talled a double-double of his own with 15 points and 10 boards.
Oh, and the win got the Wizards back to .500, but it's hard to celebrate that without knowing the full extend of Nene's injury.
KEY LINKS
Road team recaps: BF StoryStream | Washington Post (gamer, sidebar) | AP | CSN Washington (recap, sidebar) | Wiz of Awes | DC Pro Sports Report | District Sports Page | Ted's Take | Wizards.com | Monumental Network | Daily Wizdom
Home team recaps: Fear The Sword | Cleveland Plain Dealer | Akron Beacon Journal (gamer, sidebar) | The News-Herald | Waiting For Next Year (recap, Wall/Irving sidebar) | Cavs: The Blog | Right Down Euclid | Cavs.com
KEY STATS
5 - Turnovers committed by the Wizards against the Cavs, the fewest Washington has recorded in a game since Feb. 2003, according to CSN Mid-Atlantic's David Devall.
4 - Wins and losses the Wizards have recorded both at home and on the road. In other words, Washington is 28-28, 14-14 at home, and 14-14 on the road.
11 - Wizards who saw playing time against the Cavaliers. Apparently losing Nene sent Randy Wittman's shallow rotations into a tizzy.
TWEETS OF THE NIGHT
We need all your prayers #PrayforNene
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) February 24, 2014
I have heard #nene called Brazilian Jesus on @bulletsforever. If he is, #nene will perform a miracle and heal himself #prayfornene
— Jason (@souldrummer25) February 24, 2014
Three in a row for the #Wizards!! pic.twitter.com/NBdHFNjV4X
— WizardsXTRA (@WizardsXTRA) February 24, 2014
#Wizards have won three straight. Now, funnel your joy into prayer, meditative thought, or karmic transfer for Nene. pic.twitter.com/JeYb73jUpu
— Conor Dirks (@ConorDDirks) February 24, 2014
John Wall gets the best of Kyrie Irving as Wizards beat Cavs 96-83. Wall finishes with game high 21 PTS & 9 AST. pic.twitter.com/herj2rRM0S
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 24, 2014
Ariza on why they were able to contain Kyrie: "John" .... as in Wall #WizardsTalk #WizCavs #NBA
— J. Michael (@JMichaelCSN) February 24, 2014
You can't escape the most powerful force in the universe. #KSLife pic.twitter.com/ztOacNpMrs
— wizznutzz (@wzzntzz) February 24, 2014
Jan Vesely is becoming a folk tale right now. Denver fans have started calculating his extension.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) February 24, 2014
@BulletsForever @WFNYScott but remember when david falk said wall didn’t have kyrie’s feel for the game? heh.
— Bomani Jones (@bomani_jones) February 24, 2014
My homie why'd it have to be him? #Pray4Nene pic.twitter.com/zylFUHqZIX
— Conor Dirks (@ConorDDirks) February 24, 2014
VIDEO/GIF OF THE NIGHT
Anytime we get a "DAGGER!!," it's been a special night. (H/T @Truth_About_It)
GAMETHREAD RECAP COMMENT OF THE NIGHT
We had to switch things up today, because this appeared in the comments of Umair's recap, and it is the most amazing thing that has ever happened.
GAMETHREAD ROLLCALL
| # | Commenter | # Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wall_Hopeful | 100 |
| 2 | souldrummer | 64 |
| 3 | BallLikeWall | 53 |
| 4 | NewCavsfan | 48 |
| 5 | jarem | 44 |
| 6 | elliotlevy2 | 44 |
| 7 | HailSkinz | 39 |
| 8 | DCrez | 37 |
| 9 | qthaballa | 37 |
| 10 | Baird15 | 31 |
| 11 | Nickdoggmoneycash | 31 |
| 12 | solo.charles.5 | 25 |
| 13 | LRJ | 25 |
| 14 | richkam14 | 25 |
| 15 | the new Bradfather | 23 |
| 16 | lobster11 | 23 |
| 17 | Yeti60 | 21 |
| 18 | dc_chilling | 18 |
| 19 | FREEOTTO | 17 |
| 20 | BealMVP4ever | 17 |
| 21 | DMV Cock | 16 |
| 22 | ryanwadams | 16 |
| 23 | Shark Fin Soup | 15 |
| 24 | BayAreaBullet | 14 |
| 25 | KINGWIZ86 | 13 |
| 26 | KurisuDevil | 13 |
| 27 | little stevie colter | 12 |
| 28 | John Wall Stan | 6 |
| 29 | RCpige | 6 |
| 30 | Gators2015_BB3 | 6 |
| 31 | WASwizardsfan671 | 5 |
| 32 | abala | 5 |
| 33 | terpsDC | 4 |
| 34 | segrt12 | 4 |
| 35 | Bullet Nation in Exile | 3 |
| 36 | Jmee15 | 3 |
| 37 | arian1123 | 3 |
| 38 | pass first | 3 |
| 39 | DCnhokies | 3 |
| 40 | DCKRS | 2 |
| 41 | mrudolph30 | 2 |
| 42 | hotplate | 1 |
| 43 | MeToo | 1 |
| 44 | Kend3zy | 1 |
| 45 | obeast | 1 |
| 46 | Craig_ | 1 |
| 47 | The Hoops Guru | 1 |
| 48 | Knowledge92 | 1 |
| 49 | DSRalltheway | 1 |
| 50 | Jaba | 1 |
| 51 | Jordo | 1 |
| 52 | Chillinois | 1 |
| 53 | 'SkinsFan214life | 1 |
| 54 | dave21110 | 1 |
| 55 | spanishfalcon | 1 |
| 56 | Krobify | 1 |
| 57 | ronoD nagrO | 1 |
| 58 | HSLex | 1 |
| 59 | PolishHammer | 1 |
| 60 | Hugh Parent | 1 |
