Nov 29, 2008 - 6:21 AM
0 shoutsAtlanta (9-6) at Washington (2-11) 7:00 p.m. EST
WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- The Ed Tapscott era is only two games old but it has already seen its share of ups, downs and bad defense.
The Washington Wizards will try to bring the Tapscott era back above .500 when they face the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.
After Eddie Jordan was relieved of his duties and Tapscott moved from the front office to the bench as interim coach, the Wizards found immediate success, picking up a 124-100 win over Golden State on Tuesday.
But Tapscott found out why Jordan had such a hard time on Thursday as the Wizards committed 13 turnovers and allowed the Orlando Magic to shoot 47 percent (38-of-81) in a 105-90 loss.
Washington boasts the third-worst defense in the NBA in terms of field-goal percentage, allowing 47.3 percent shooting.
In past years, the Wizards overcame their defensive shortcomings with one of the most potent offenses in the league, but this season Washington has slumped offensively as well, ranking near the bottom of the NBA while scoring only 96.5 points per game.
Atlanta is coming off a 93-88 loss at Toronto on Friday. Mike Bibby scored 24 points in the losing effort.
While the Hawks are 5-1 at home, they have struggled to a 4-5 mark on the road.
They earned a win against the Wizards, 91-87, on November 19 as Bibby scored 25 points to lead three starters with at least 19.
From the Bleachers
-
ATLANTA: 102
WASHINGTON: 98
Final
Nov 29 9:29 PM -
ATLANTA: 80
WASHINGTON: 71
End of 3rd
Nov 29 8:49 PM -
ATLANTA: 55
WASHINGTON: 45
Halftime
Nov 29 8:08 PM -
ATLANTA: 28
WASHINGTON: 17
End of 1st
Nov 29 7:39 PM
